When Calls the Heart
by belle2990
Summary: Yamato didn't save Sakura from Sasuke, and Sasuke ends up taking her back to Orochimaru. Sasuke must come to terms with his feelings as the final battle between him and Itachi, and Akatsuki vs Konoha Twelve approaches. SasuSaku NaruHina continued in TSS
1. After Two and a Half Years

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto (unfortunately). And the beginning and middle of the chapter belongs to Naruto manga Volume 34 chapter 306...so don't sue me!

_Italics _flashbacks (sorry if it gets a little confusing…)

This chapter takes place during the Naruto manga Volume 34 chapter 306. I changed it a little at the end…but the rest of the story will be mine!

**Chapter One: After Two and a Half Years…**

Sakura spotted Sai. Her anger was instantly aroused, as she thought that he was here to assassinate Sasuke. She ran at him and grabbed him by the throat. Yamato and Naruto stood by, shocked by Sakura's actions.

"You!" Sakura yelled at Sai. "What the hell are you after?!" She drew back her fist to punch Sai, but a voice from above stopped her.

"Ah…it's Sakura."

_That voice…_thought Sakura. She looked up to where it had come from, and froze. Her eyes were wide and unblinking as she stared at the form of her old teammate, silhouetted by the sun. She couldn't see his expression; it was hidden in the shadows. But she recognized that voice…it had haunted her dreams for two and a half years.

She let go of Sai, and turned towards the cliff. Sai massaged his bruised throat.

"Sasuke…" she whispered.

Naruto, too, heard the voice, and stopped. His heart seemed to stop , as he hadn't heard the voice of his ex-teammate and friend, Sasuke. Yamato, too, was surprised that they actually found Sasuke, but his face remained impassive.

Naruto regained his senses and sped off towards Sakura and Sasuke, but he fell midway, as he still hadn't healed from his encounter with Kabuto and Orochimaru on the bridge, where he had released the fourth tail of the kyuubi. Naruto was on his hands and knees, breathing hard, but his resolve was firm. He shakily got up and joined Sakura in staring at Sasuke. Sweat beaded his brow and ran down his face under the hot blistering sun as he concentrated to see the boy he considered to be a brother.

A cloud floated under the sun, making Sasuke's expression readable. His eyebrows were furrowed, almost as if he was sad or disappointed that they were here, but his face remained calm.

"Sasuke…" Naruto said in a voice full of emotion.

Sasuke had changed. Instead of his usual blue shirt and cream-colored shorts, he was wearing a loose robe-like shirt that was open down the middle, exposing his defined chest and abs. The whiteness of his shirt contrasted to the darkness of his pants. Around his middle was a dark material of the sameness of his pants, which were held up by the same purple rope that Orochimaru wore. There was a sword strapped to his back that no one had seen before. His stance was relaxed, with one hand on his hip, the other hanging at his side.

Sakura and Naruto were looking up at Sasuke with passion and hope, while Sasuke was looking down at them with a sense of serenity.

Sasuke's voice was emotionless when he spoke. "And now Naruto…so you came too. Does that mean that Kakashi's here as well?"

Yamato had joined the group a few moments before. He answered, "Unfortunately Kakashi couldn't be here, but I'm here in his place. We, team Kakashi, are going to be taking you back to Konoha."

"Team Kakashi, huh…" was Sasuke's reply.

Sai took out his weapon. Sakura looked at him and raised her fist. "Sai! I knew it!" but Sai made no move to attack Sasuke. Instead he raised his weapon towards him. Yamato looked sideways at him, not knowing what he was up to.

Before anyone said anything, Sasuke spoke up. "So he's filling in for me then, is he? He was spouting some kind of nonsense about protecting the bonds between Naruto and me…one more pansy for the group, quite the fit I'm sure."

Sakura was confused. "Huh?"

Sai spoke. "It is true. My top-secret mission was indeed the assassination of Sasuke. But those orders don't matter anymore…now I want to think and act for myself. Because of Naruto, I feel like I might be able to remember something…remember how I used to feel…something which, I can't help but feeling, was very important to me…" Sai's gaze was determined as he tried to convince Sasuke of how important his bonds were with his teammates.

Sasuke looked down as he said this, seemingly lost in his memories.

Sai continued. "I may not know you all that well, but there's a reason why Naruto and Sakura chase after you with so much passion. In order to prevent the bonds with you from breaking…in order to keep them intact, they're doing everything they can….I still don't have a very good understanding of it myself. But you, Sasuke, should know why." Sai glared at Sasuke as he said the last sentence.

Sasuke replied, "Sure, I did know. And that's why I severed them. I have other bonds that I carry…" Yamato and Sai looked up with confusion, and Naruto with anger. Sakura was astonished and hurt at the same time. "Fraternal bonds, forged through hate."

Sasuke had a flashback. _"Why are you so weak?" Itachi asked. "It's because you lack…hatred."_

Sasuke continued. "All my other bonds caused me to lose focus…and weakened by strongest wish, my greatest desire."

Naruto had a flashback of his fight with Sasuke when Sasuke was on his way to Orochimaru. _Naruto had Sasuke up against a wall, and Sasuke was yelling, "You never had parents, you never had a brother…so what would you know about me anyway…you were alone from the very start! So why the hell would you know what I've been through!!! Huh!!?"_

_Naruto replied with, "It's because of the bonds that I've had that I've suffered!!! The loss of those bonds is something you can never understand…A true parent, or a true brother like you say, are things I can't understand…"_

In the present Naruto said, "…if that's true…"

_Sasuke looked at Naruto. "Why…why do you go so far just for me…" _

"_Because to me," Naruto replied, "You represent bonds I've waited for so long to make."_

Sasuke was also remembering that moment.

"_That's why I'm going to stop you from going!!" Naruto told Sasuke._

"If that's true, then…" Naruto asked again.

"_In that case, I only need to sever those bonds!" Sasuke had shouted at Naruto._

"Why didn't you kill me back then!? Is that what you call severing bonds!? Sasuke!!" Naruto yelled at Sasuke.

Sakura looked at Naruto. "Naruto…"

Sasuke sighed. "The reason is simple. And it isn't that I wasn't able to sever my bonds with you…" Sasuke remembered what Itachi had told him.

"_You, just like me, possess the potential to awaken the Mangekyou Sharingan…But there is one condition…you must kill…your closest friend."_

Sasuke continued. "I simply didn't want to give him the pleasure…of seeing me obtain power by submitting to his plans."

Naruto gritted his teeth and continued to sweat. "What do you mean by that?"

"There's no need for me to tell you," Sasuke answered. "Still, the one thing I can say to you…is that back then…" Naruto looked up expectantly. "I chose to spare your life at nothing more than a whim of mine."

Naruto's face became determined, while the others looked up at a mixture of shock and anticipation at what would happen next.

Sasuke suddenly appeared in front of Naruto, one hand on Naruto's shoulder, and the other hand on his hip. He was almost hugging Naruto.

Naruto was dumbfounded.

_He's fast…_Yamato thought.

_When did he…? _thought Sakura. Sai was emotionless.

Sasuke continued to talk to Naruto. "Come to think of it, isn't becoming Hokage is one of your dreams? If you have the time to chase me around, you would've been better off training…Don't you think… Naruto?"

Sakura looked on the verge of tears. "Sas…Sasuke!?"

Sasuke ignored her. "And that's why this time…" Sasuke pulled out his sword. "You're going to end up losing your life, all at a whim of mine."

Naruto had a determined look on his face. "Like there's any chance someone who can't save a friend, could become Hokage. Don't you think…Sasuke?"

"Hn…" Sasuke was about to stab Naruto, but Sai stepped in the way and grabbed Sasuke's arm.

Naruto quickly did a back flip while holding on to Sasuke arm.

"All right," said Yamato. He quickly did the hand seals and held out his hand. Out of his palm came an extension of his skin, headed towards Sasuke. Sasuke had his Sharingan activated.

"Chidori Nagashi!" Instantly blue lightning came out of Sasuke's body, and Naruto and Sai were knocked backwards. Sasuke sliced the hand that was extending from Yamato's hand. There was a sound of chirping birds as Naruto and Sai fell to the ground.

Yamato cancelled the jutsu as he fell back and was dazed by the attack. Sakura stood, shocked. _Chidori coming out of his body? _thought Sakura.

Seeing her comrades hurt, Sakura became angry. Her face became determined. She remembered when she told Naruto that she would help next time with Sasuke.

Sakura ran at Sasuke. He looked sideways at her as she screamed, "Sasuke, I'm going to stop you with my own power!" Sakura prepared to punch him, as Sasuke looked at her.

Sasuke charged up his blade with Chidori and prepared to stab Sakura as Yamato ran as fast as he could to save Sakura, but Sakura was determined to stop Sasuke.

As Sasuke was about to stab Sakura, he saw, in his mind's eye, the last time he had seen her….crying and broken-hearted over him. In doing so, Sasuke hesitated for the barest of seconds. He tried to pull back, but it was too late. Sakura had tried to block the blade with a kunai, but the blade broke the kunai in half, and so drove itself into Sakura's shoulder.

Sakura screamed with the pain. Still, she managed to follow through with her punch and she heard Sasuke's jawbone crack.

Sasuke stood dumbfounded as he found Sakura at the end of his blade. He instantly cancelled the chidori.

"Sakura…" he said not knowing what else to say. Sakura remained upright, even though her vision was blurring.

"Sasuke…I'm going to bring you home if I die trying," she whispered.

Sasuke was speechless. He had never suspected that Sakura had changed this much. Two years ago she would've been crying or passed out from the pain. He could see her eyes glazed over from the pain, but she just gritted her teeth.

Sasuke recovered his senses and pulled out his sword. His voice and face became emotionless as he heard her groan, and cover her wound with her hand.

Sasuke massaged his jaw. "That was a mistake, Sakura. My blade, Kusanagi, cannot be blocked. I don't know what made you think you could take me, but you don't stand a chance."

Sakura was seething. Not only was she bleeding profusely and dizzy, but her shoulder hurt like hell now. But her eyes were blazing with determination. Sasuke thought she looked like Naruto when he resolved to do something.

"Sasuke, nothing can stop me now. I've got to protect my fallen comrades, and I vowed to Naruto that I would help to bring you home." While she was talking, she was sending chakra to her shoulder to close the wound.

She got it to stop bleeding, but it would take up too much chakra to fully heal herself, so she resorted to just using her good arm. She knelt and slammed the ground, sending her chakra through her fist, creating a crevasse. Sasuke had to jump on another rock to avoid it.

"Well, Sakura. I'm impressed that you've grown stronger. But you're not strong enough. It would be wise of you to stop this battle while I'm giving you the chance to."

Sakura was panting. Her left arm hung uselessly at her side. She swayed but caught herself before she fell. Sasuke sheathed his sword, and even turned off his Sharingan.

"Damnit, Sasuke! Take me seriously! I'm not the same weak girl I was when you left! I'm a formidable opponent and you would be wise to treat me like one!" Sakura didn't think she was formidable, but Sasuke didn't need to know that.

Sasuke crossed his arms. "Really, Sakura? As far as I can tell you aren't even worth my time."

Sakura jumped onto the cliff, and punched the ground, creating a landslide of boulders, heading towards Sasuke. He easily avoided them by jumping, and landing behind Sakura.

She saw him disappear and sensed him behind her, but not until it was too late. Sasuke pushed her off the edge of the cliff. Sakura was too far away from the cliff's edge to try and stop her descent, so she twisted her body so that she was facing the rapidly approaching ground. She channeled her chakra into her outstretched hand, and shot it out, so that it slowed her descent. She still landed hard, cracking her ribs.

Sakura gasped as pain reverberated through her wounded shoulder and now her ribs. She heard her comrades waking up.

Naruto shakily stood up as he saw Sakura fall to the ground. "Sakura!"

Sakura gritted her teeth and pulled herself up, and the stood shakily. Sasuke glared.

"Just give up Sakura! It's futile!" _Give up before I have to hurt you even more,_ Sasuke added in his mind.

"I will never give up! I won't let you leave again, Sasuke!" She looked up at him as she did a serious of hand seals. She bent her knees as green chakra surrounded her. Rocks started vibrating and floating as the power continued to grow.

Sasuke stared in amazement. _Could this really be Sakura?_

He was so intent upon watching Sakura that he didn't notice two presences behind him until one of them spoke.

"Well, Sasuke. How does it feel to see your old comrades again?" Orochimaru asked, his face grinning evilly, as usual.

Disgusted, Sasuke grunted. "They're not my comrades."

Kabuto looked down at Sakura. "Is that really Sakura? Apparently her arm is healed, then."

Sasuke glared at him. "What do you mean?" he asked, activating his Sharingan.

"Sakura was wounded by the kyuubi and I healed her." Kabuto looked at Sasuke. "Why would you want to know?"

Sasuke said nothing, but turned to watch Sakura. A crater was forming below Sakura, but Sakura was still building up her power. She was gritting her teeth at the pain. Tsunade had told her that the jutsu would completely drain her chakra, so that she was left barely clinging to life, and should only be used as a last resort.

Sakura didn't care if it killed her, as long Sasuke would be saved from himself. She was halfway done charging up her chakra for her ultimate attack.

Orochimaru frowned. "Kabuto, take care of her. In this state she could be a nuisance."

"Should I kill her, Orochimaru?"

Sasuke whipped his head around when he heard this.

Orochimaru thought for a few moments before saying, "No. We still need her in case she takes out more Akatsuki members. Plus her medical expertise might be of value to us. No, don't kill her. I don't care how you stop her, just as long as she's alive."

Orochimaru turned to go, and Sasuke knew he was supposed to follow, but he never listened to Orochimaru anyways. He stepped in front of Kabuto.

"What are you going to do?" Sasuke inquired.

Kabuto answered, "I'm going to give her a poison that will make her body numb. The only antidote is back home, so she'll have no choice but to comply with us."

Sasuke nodded. He knew he couldn't afford to show such emotion…or heaven forbid affection…towards Sakura. After all, he had broken their bond two and a half years ago. _I shouldn't feel anything for her. I don't know why I did in the first place. She's so annoying…_But as he watched the power form around her, he couldn't help but feel something towards her…perhaps it was pride in his teammate for finally becoming strong…No, that wasn't it. Well…that might be part of it.

While Sasuke mentally battled with himself, Kabuto approached Sakura. He put up his hand to shied his face as he was twenty feet away from her. If Kabuto hadn't channeled chakra to his feet, he would've been blown away. His arms were already beginning to burn, and his clothes were being singed by the chakra emitting from her. He took out the shot, as he stopped. He couldn't go on unless he wanted to seriously damage himself.

"Sakura!" he yelled to get her attention. He had to yell her name a few more times to get her attention. When she finally looked at him, he froze. Her look was full of pain…and a promise of pain. She closed her eyes, and when she opened them again, her chakra exploded around her, and there was a sonic boom as it was flung in all directions. Kabuto was hit and was blown away. Sasuke sensed a wave of chakra coming his way, and ducked and put up a chakra shield around him.

Naruto just stared, thunderstruck at what he had just witnessed. He didn't have the strength to move, and Yamato and Sai would've stood up, but didn't because they would've been blown away.

Kabuto landed at the base of a tree. He would've been killed had he not been able to regenerate and heal himself rapidly. When the power faded away, Sakura's body was on fire. She felt completely drained of everything, even willpower as she fell to her knees, and clutched her rapidly beating heart. If she didn't slow down her heart it would explode. Sakura tried to stop panting, and took deep, even breaths to calm herself down. Her vision blurred and she coughed up blood. The wound in her shoulder started bleeding again.

Sasuke jumped down, and landed next to her.

"Sas…Sasuke…I'm sorry…that…I…f-failed you…again. I guess…you won't be…coming home…with me…today." She looked at him with eyes glazed over with tears of pain, both physical and emotional pain.

"Sakura…why?" Sasuke asked.

Kabuto appeared next to him, and Sakura's eyes widened with horror and fear when she saw him inject something in her arm.

"Sasuke?" she asked. Her voice, laced with fear and pain, made his stomach clench, and did something to his heart. It made his heart hurt. Sasuke shook his head to clear his thoughts and put up his emotionless mask.

"Sakura, you're going to be coming with me this time."

Sakura's eyes widened at the thought. "You mean…Orochimaru?"

Sasuke nodded, his face impassive. Sakura's eyes closed as she whispered, "Sasuke…"

Kabuto stood up. He looked at Sasuke, saying, "I'll let you carry her back. I'll see you at the bunkers." Sasuke nodded.

Kabuto disappeared, and Sasuke started at Sakura, who was broken and bleeding, but wasn't crying.

He heard her teammates yell her name, so he quickly grabbed her limp body and put it over his shoulders. He did it as gently as he could. He looked back at Naruto, and said, "Don't try to follow us. If you do, I'll kill her myself."

Naruto yelled his name, but Sasuke was already gone.

Naruto, Yamato, and Sai swore. They slowly stood up, all of them hurt by Sasuke's chidori.

Naruto gritted his teeth and said, "Come on, we're going after those bastards."

Naruto took a step forward, and fell to the ground, coughing up blood. Yamato walked to his side, and helped him up, putting his hand around his shoulder, supporting Naruto. Sai shakily stood up and did the same.

Yamato spoke. "Naruto, as much as we want to go after Sakura, we can't. You're in no condition to fight and we all have to be healed before we do anything. We're going back to Konoha to report this to the Hokage. She's not going to like this…"

Naruto nodded. He knew it would be a suicide mission. Despite using every ounce of his willpower to stay awake, Naruto passed out. Yamato and Sai took off in the direction of Konoha, both sad and worried about their fallen comrade and their kidnapped comrade.

**Well what do you think? I know most of this chapter was from the manga but I wanted to follow it for as long as I could, and then I changed it for my story. Everything before Sakura getting stabbed belongs to the manga. From there on is all mine! Well please review and I'm going to wait a little longer to update this story, but the chapters will be longer and hopefully longer. Please review and tell me what you think! Thanks!**

**belle2990**


	2. Captive

-1**Hey guys! Thanks for all of the reviews…I'm glad that you guys like my story! **

**Question: What does AU stand for?**

**Okay, I just want to clarify something. I know that in the manga and anime the names have -kun or -san or -chan or whatever, and that their names start with their last and end with their first, but in my English-ified version I'll just say their names and the names like English-speaking (not that I'm being racist or stereotypical or anything; it's just easier that way for me)…kay? PS. Please don't take offense at this…**

**To all you wonderful reviewers:**

**FaitaGirl- **Yah I know what you mean by poorly written stories (not that I'm saying mine are any better either) And no offense taken as the summary for the story kind of sucked but that was because I ran out of room so I had to shorten it up…sorry about that! Wow I'm really glad that you like it though! I hope you're not disappointed with this chapter!

**sasusakufaves-** I'm glad that it sounds really cool! Sorry I didn't update sooner but the last story I wrote I updated pretty fast, and the chapters were short, so I want to try and make these ones longer and better. I'll try to anyways!

**M Warrior**- I'm glad that you think it's cool…

**TinhThuyVan-** I'm glad that you love it and I will always continue my stories (well…until they're completed of course!)

**UchihaSakura87**- I'll let you in on a little secret…the reason I did such a good job recreating it was because I was looking at the manga while I wrote it…otherwise I would've screwed everything up. I know I know…how sad. But what can I say? And I had to make Sakura kick some booty because she never does in the anime and it just makes me mad! Yah, Sasuke knows that Orochimaru is up to no good…and of course he's going to get her the antidote, but he's not going to take her back to Konoha just yet. I have things in mind…Mwahahahahaha! Okay, enough with the sadistic laughter now. : ) Well I try to write good stories anyways… (watch out or I might start blushing) : )

**Wrath-of-the-ebil-phoenix-** I agree that the manga should've done this plotline instead (that's why I'm writing it!) Thanks for the compliment! Makes me feel special! Hmmm….is that a promise on the waffle and three cookies? My stomach is rumbling in anticipation…

**Egustogustason**- Glad you love it and I will try to keep it up!

**BlondeKell- **Don't worry Sakura will be okay! (oops…did I just reveal something important???)

**Ur2tRoUbLeSoMe90-** Don't worry there will be sweet moments and (not to spoil the story) but he will eventually come to understand what he feels for her…although it might be too late…(sorry about that just didn't want to reveal too much…like to keep y'all on your toes with suspense…or hopefully anyways!)

**InuyashaLover167-** I love Inuyasha too! Anywho…you really think I'm an amazing writer??? Well thank you! Well I'm glad that you want to know what happens…means I'm doing my job well! (hopefully!)

**Neko's Snow-** Well I hope it's as good or even better than my last story! It's good to know that you're keeping track of what I write though…thank you!

**rebel-girl-** I try to always make them in character (but if you want to involve Sasuke in a romance he has to be OOC…how unfortunate!) And I know what you mean…the manga made me mad because she didn't get to fight! On the other hand, she was the only one of her team to not be hurt by Sasuke….and what does that tell you????? Hopefully something good for Sasuke and Sakura! (Although knowing my luck I doubt it…)

**Rakero-chan**- Well I'm glad that you found it nevertheless! I hope you are too!

**Sparklestar330**- Glad that you love it and here's your update!

**C.A.M.E.O.1 and Only- **Ummm...I'm not really sure what you meant by your review…perhaps you could clarify it for me? Was that an "Oh crap" this story sucks or "Oh crap" what's going to happen? Or maybe "Oh crap" I clicked the wrong button and now I have to do these stupid reviews…well anyways clarification would be nice please!

**Seiya-lost-in-the-darkness-** Glad you love it and I'm continuing (as you can see)!

**karehiro**- Thanks! I only wish it really did happen in the manga! But unfortunately it didn't, so I made my own story! (well duh you're reading it!) : ) I hope I continue to do a good job so as not to disappoint you!

**FYI: When I say "chest" towards the middle of this chapter I do not mean boobs! Okay? So Sasuke's not being perverted! Just wanted to let you perverts know that!**

**Okay guys on with the story!**

**Chapter Two: Captive**

Sakura awoke slowly. Her body felt numbness, and when she tried to move her body groaned in protest as she shifted her wounds. She blinked a few times to allow her jade eyes to adjust to the darkness.

_Where am I?_ she thought as she looked around the small room. It was a very plain room, with only a small cot, which she was laying on, and a dresser in the corner. There was a small wooden door opposite the wall she was against.

Then memories flashed inside her head. Tears pooled in the corners of her eyes when she remembered what had transpired on this fateful day.

"Sasuke…" she whispered in the darkness, knowing that he was near, yet so far away.

Sakura squeezed her eyes shut to prevent the flow of tears down her cheeks. She wasn't going to cry. She'd spent the last two and a half years becoming stronger, training not to show any weaknesses. She clenched her jaw. And she wasn't going to start now.

Sakura took a moment to assess the damage that had been done to her body. There was nothing she could do for mental and emotional pain right now. The wound from Kusanagi in her shoulder was hurting like hell. Sakura found that was completely out of chakra, thanks to her jutsu that she Tsunade had taught her. Unfortunately it would take at least three days to regain all of her chakra, since it was in such abundance after she had become Tsunade's apprentice. Sakura sighed. She would have to deal with her wounds for at least a day, until some of her chakra returned so that she could attempt to heal herself.

Sakura found herself barely able to move. _It must be the poison Kabuto injected in me,_ she thought. Sakura swallowed a sob. She couldn't move. Her body was numb, but she still felt the pain of her injuries. _Hmph. They could've at least numbed my injuries,_ she thought bitterly.

Her thoughts swiftly traveled to Sasuke. She hadn't seen him for almost three years. He…he had almost killed her with his Kusanagi. But Sakura had seen him hesitate. It was only for the barest of seconds, but she had seen something in eyes as he saw his sword rip through her shoulder. She wasn't sure what it was, but Sakura knew that it was a good sign that he was returning to his old self.

"Sasuke…" Sakura whispered as remembered the last time that she had seen him. He had betrayed Konoha and all of the shinobi, but the thing that hurt worst was that he had done it so easily. He wasn't even going to say goodbye to anyone on that night…she thought that he had finally found a family in her, Naruto, and Kakashi. Her heart started to hurt when she remembered that night. She had poured out her heart to him, and he had cruelly and so hurtfully rejected it, like she meant nothing to him. She would have believed that he felt absolutely nothing for her had he not said those last three words: "Sakura…thank you."

Sakura still didn't understand what he had meant by those words. What was he thanking her for? Why would he want to be alone after telling her how hurtful it was to be alone? Didn't he realize how much it had hurt everyone? Didn't he know how evil Orochimaru really was? Did he know that Shikamaru, Neji, Kiba, and Choji had put their life on the line to bring him back simply because he was a Konoha shinobi? How could he hurt Naruto like that? There were so many questions…all of them left unanswered.

Sakura made a resolve that the next time she saw Sasuke (if she ever did see him again, that is; but something told him that she would) that she would ask him those questions. And she wouldn't take a "Hn" for an answer, either.

For the next five minutes Sakura just lay there, staring at the dirty ceiling. She wondered when someone would show up to interrogate her. Or at least tell her why the hell she was here!

After a half an hour passed, Sakura began to grow worried. Did they plan just to leave her here to die? She could feel her body start to fail as the poison began to attack her body systems. Her heartbeat sped up rapidly, so fast that she thought it would burst. Then it slowed, to where it was hardly beating at all. She felt a pain in her abdomen, that was slowly starting to spread to all areas of her body. She began to sweat heavily.

_Is this really it? Am I going to die in this dirty room, helpless and weak? Damnit! I thought I was stronger than this! I'm a medic-nin for God's sake!_

She gritted her teeth as her insides felt like they were on fire. Despite her intentions she cried out, helpless against the onslaught of the burning sensations coursing through her body.

Her eyes began to blur, but not from tears. No, Sakura had made a vow to never cry again. Never to be weak again. And she intended to keep it, even if her life was to be short-lived.

………………………………...

Sasuke walked silently down the corridor. He swore. Where was Kabuto? He needed to get that stupid antidote before Sakura died. Not that he cared; it was Orochimaru who wanted her alive. Or so he tried to tell himself.

His thoughts went back to yesterday. He hadn't expected his teammates, especially Naruto, to give up searching for him so easily. It had surprised him that they had found their hideout, but was even more disturbing was how much things had changed. Despite not wanting to, Sasuke found himself growing bitter that his place had been taken on the team. And where the hell was Kakashi? Sasuke was sure Kakashi wouldn't have missed this opportunity to get him back.

And what the hell was up with Sakura? He didn't know she was capable of such strength…or power. What had happened since he'd been gone? The last time he'd seen her she was weak and helpless. Naruto and Sasuke had always protected her.

Just then an agonizing scream pierced his musings. Sasuke instantly ran in the direction of it. It was coming from his bedroom.

"Sakura…" he whispered. He was about to go in when he remembered that he didn't have to antidote.

He cursed Kabuto, and then calmed down and concentrated. He closed his eyes and searched for his chakra. A few moments later he found it in the laboratory. Sasuke ran all the way there, her screams echoing in his mind as he faced Kabuto.

"Give me the antidote." He said, his voice emotionless.

Kabuto turned around from his experiments and smiled. "Ahh…Sasuke. I was wondering when you would show up. I told you not to be late. Sakura's probably in tremendous pain right now. In fact, you have about roughly five minutes before her organs fail completely." He said all of this in such a cheerful tone that disgusted Sasuke. He despised the medic-nin, and would just as soon kill him if he had the chance.

Sasuke held out his hand for the antidote. Kabuto hesitated before putting it in his hands. "So Sasuke…why do you want to save Sakura so much? Weren't you always complaining about how annoying and weak she was when you were twelve? If I remember correctly-"

"Kabuto, shut up and give it to me."

Kabuto hesitated for another second before dropping it in Sasuke's hand. Sasuke turned around and headed for the door. Before he left the room, Sasuke turned around.

"For your information, I could care less if she died. She's nothing to me." He shrugged his shoulders. "It's Orochimaru's orders. Nothing more."

After Sasuke left Kabuto smirked and pushed up his glasses. "We'll see, Sasuke. We'll see."

………………………………...

Sakura could barely breathe now. Each breath felt like she was inhaling daggers, and each heartbeat etched a little more of her life away. But Sakura refused to cry.

Another spasm of pain traveled through her body, and her body convulsed. She screamed again. Her head was throbbing, and felt like it was going to explode.

Faintly she heard the door open, and someone walk in. She turned her head and tried to make out the dark figure. As he neared, Sakura's eyes went wide.

"Sasuke…you came. I-"

"Shut up. I just came to gave you the antidote. But only because Orochimaru wants to keep you around."

Sakura flinched, then turned away. _Of course he wouldn't be here because he wants to save you. Stop being so stupid Sakura! Get a grip! This guy will never care about you!_

Sakura convulsed again, and Sasuke waited until she was done.

"Sakura….this is going to hurt."

Sakura nodded briefly. Sasuke took a deep breath and plunged the six-inch needle straight into her heart. Sakura screamed and started thrashing, but Sasuke held her down with one arm while injecting the solution with the next. Once he was done he threw the syringe to the side and held Sakura down while her body tossed and turned. After a minute Sakura finally stopped.

Sakura looked at Sasuke. She smiled at him. "Thank you, Sasuke."

Then her jade eyes closed, and her heartbeat suddenly stopped. When he didn't hear a heartbeat, Sasuke's heart nearly stopped as well.

"Sakura!" he started to shake her. Not getting a response, he slapped her face, trying to wake her up. "Sakura!" he yelled. Sasuke cursed. _Am I too late? _Still she didn't wake up. Sasuke cursed Kabuto and Orochimaru for putting her in this position in the first place. And then he cursed himself for being too late. If he hadn't taken so long to get here, and then to get the freaking antidote Sakura would be okay!

_Wait a minute…why do I care whether she lives or dies? Good riddance to her! She was annoying after all…But am I really okay with never seeing her smile again? Her pink hair blowing in the wind? Her warm voice that could melt any cold heart? _

While Sasuke was battling with himself he failed to notice that Sakura's color was coming back to her. Suddenly Sakura's eyes shot open, and she gasped as her heart started racing.

Sasuke jumped as she shot up, trying to breathe. Sasuke stood there for a moment, too shocked to do anything else. Then he went up behind her and put his hands on her chest. For a moment Sakura was too stunned to do anything. Then he started massaging the spot where her lungs were. At first it did nothing but speed up Sakura's heart. But after a few moments she could feel him sending his chakra through his hands, so that he was basically massaging her lungs. Soon she started to breathe normally (although her heart rate didn't go down). Then Sasuke's warmth left her as he pushed her back down on the bed. When he met her eyes he noticed that her face was the same color as her hair.

Sasuke repressed a smirk. It wouldn't do for her to actually think he _enjoyed _helping her. After all, she meant nothing to him. Sasuke ignored the little voice in the corner of his mind that told him otherwise. As he turned to go he heard Sakura whisper.

"Sasuke…" Her voice was raspy. "Thank you."

Sasuke turned and met her eyes. "Don't leave this room. I'll bring you your food and water. If you choose to disobey my orders I will kill you."

Sakura's eyes widened, but she said nothing. She gulped and nodded. When he left the room Sakura touched her chest. It was warm, and was about the only part of her body that wasn't sore or didn't hurt in some way. Too bad she couldn't say that for her heart.

Sakura knew that he had just saved his life. And she also knew, without a doubt, that Sasuke never did anything that he didn't want to do. So that meant…that he had actually _wanted _to save her life. At least…Sakura hoped so.

But if he didn't care then why was he so tender when healing her lungs? She didn't even know that he knew how to do that. Kabuto had probably taught him how to heal wounds.

Sakura sighed. Only a small amount of chakra had returned to her. Not even enough to heal a paper cut. She closed her eyes and willed herself into a blissful state of numbness, so that maybe she wouldn't feel any pain. Her body minded her, but her mind didn't. She dreamt of obsidian eyes and broken hearts.

………………………………...

Sasuke was angry. No, he was more than angry. He was pissed. He was beyond pissed. If anyone looked at him right now he would kill them on sight. No one messed with an Uchiha when they were on the rampage. And everyone knew it. Apparently though, one didn't.

Sasuke entered the lab and blew the door right off its hinges. It flew across the room smashed into all sorts of vials and bottles, shattering the glass and the substances spilling everywhere, giving off a foul odor.

Kabuto turned around and grinned at Sasuke.

"Well, did it work?"

Sasuke ignored him as he stalked up to Kabuto and grabbed him by the neck. Sasuke slammed him against the wall repeatedly. Kabuto made no move to try and defend himself. The last thing Orochimaru would want is a fight between the two. So Kabuto let Sasuke take out his anger and frustration on himself.

After awhile Sasuke held Kabuto by the neck, and dangled him off the ground. Sasuke's Sharingan bore into Kabuto's eyes. "Why didn't you tell me it would stop her heart?"

Kabuto grinned, despite the blood running down his face. "You didn't ask."

Sasuke glared at Kabuto as he snapped his neck, then threw him across the room. Kabuto started healing himself as soon as Sasuke stalked out of the room, cursing all the while.

After Kabuto was done regenerating himself he rubbed his neck. He swore. _That hurt, damnit! _Kabuto narrowed his eyes as he observed the damage the Uchiha had inflicted. _He's going to pay._ Kabuto knew that Orochimaru would kill him if he physically hurt the Uchiha. Kabuto smirked. _He said nothing about hurting his heart, however._

………………………………...

Sasuke couldn't stand being inside. It felt like the walls were suffocating him. He had to get out and unleash the fury that had been building inside of him. Kabuto had helped to relinquish some of it, but Sasuke wouldn't be satisfied until he was out in the open and able to do as he freely wished, on whatever he wished.

He stepped out into the sunlight. He let it rain down upon for a moment, and then his eyes turned blood red once again, with three markings forming a circle inside of them.

He could feel the chidori build up inside of him on impulse. He let it race through his system, the feeling of power exhilarating. He sighed in content. This is what he had betrayed his village and his friends for. Power. The seductive, ever-present power.

Sasuke couldn't imagine his life without power. It was a part of him, just like his Sharingan. Sasuke started reminiscing about the past, with Team 7 and Konoha. Sasuke knew on that fateful night when he had left that he had a decision to make. Power or emotions. He couldn't have both. He figured since emotions only hindered him on his quest for power that he should just rid himself of them.

But for some reason he thought the exact opposite of what he had just thought. He replayed in his head the Second Exams of the Chuunin Exams, in the Forest of Death. He had woken up and saw Sakura beaten, her hair chopped off. He had reacted instantly, the sight of her bloody face giving him added strength.

_  
Could it be said that emotions make you stronger as well? _Sasuke mused. Then he chidoried the hell out of the unsuspecting trees.

………………………………...

Sakura awoke when she heard the door open and close swiftly.

She slowly opened her eyes. She sensed a comforting chakra.

"Sasuke…"

"Here. Eat it. This is all you're getting for now." Sasuke was about to turn to leave when Sakura called out.

"Wait!"

Sasuke stopped and turned to look at her.

"Sasuke, I need to ask you something. Well, more like some things."

Sasuke said nothing. Nor did he move.

Sakura sighed. She knew this wasn't going to be easy. She struggled to sit up. The wound in her shoulder reminded her that moving wasn't such a good idea, but Sakura hated to be in such a vulnerable position. She slowly sat up and leaned her back against the wall. That small action made beads of sweat form on her forehead, and she lay panting for a few moments.

Sasuke started to move towards the door once again.

"Sasuke…if you don't answer my questions I won't eat."

"Hn. If you don't eat you'll die."

"And if I die Orochimaru wouldn't be too happy, would he?"

Sasuke glared. _Would she really refuse to eat if I don't answer her stupid questions? _ Sasuke took a look at her determined gaze. _Yes,_ he mentally answered himself.

Sasuke sighed, then walked over and sat on the edge of the bed. He rested his back against the wall and leaned back his head to stare at the ceiling. He had one knee propped up and the other leg straight out in front of him. His arm was resting on his knee, while his other arm was resting beside him. All in all his position looked relaxed, but Sakura knew that he was far from relaxed.

Sakura cleared her throat. "So…erm…Sasuke?"

"What?" he replied, not moving.

"The night you left Konoha, before you knocked me out, you said thank you. What were you thanking me for?" Sakura talked in a quiet voice, looking at her fidgeting hands. When he didn't answer she turned her emerald gaze to him, imploring him to answer.

Sasuke sighed. "I told you how I broke all of my bonds."

Sakura nodded.

"I felt that since I was breaking such a strong bond with you, I should at least give you something in return. In truth I really don't know what I meant, but it was the only thing I was able to say to you."

He turned his obsidian gaze to her. "But it meant nothing to me. I guess I was just too softhearted back then."

Sakura swallowed as a lump formed in her throat. She nodded slightly.

"Sasuke-"

"Hold on. It's only fair I get to ask you a question now."

Sakura didn't hide her surprise. "You want to ask me something?"

"Hn. Don't read anything in to it. I'm just curious."

Sakura nodded in agreement.

"How did you get so strong?" Sasuke asked, avoiding her eyes.

"You didn't know?" Sakura asked.

"Obviously not if I'm asking you," Sasuke snapped.

Sakura blew out a sigh of frustration. "Sorry," she mumbled. She cleared her throat and continued. "Well, after you left I felt so helpless to do anything. Especially when Naruto, Neji, Choji, Kiba, and Shikamaru came back after failing to retrieve you." Her gaze bore into him. "They almost all died trying to save you." Sasuke said nothing to this, so Sakura continued. "Well, I decided to go after you myself. Naruto found out and decided to tag along. Somehow Jiraiya found out, and convinced Tsunade to allow us to go on a mission to Sound village. Anyways, long story short, Naruto ended up saving me numerous times. When we came back to Konoha after not finding you, something inside of me snapped. I told myself that I wasn't going to be a weak little girl anymore, and so I asked Tsunade to train me to be a medic-nin. I knew that I could excel in that area, with my intelligence and my expert chakra control. Not that I'm trying to brag."

Sasuke took a moment to absorb all that she had told him. He didn't say anything, so Sakura went ahead with her question. "The first day that we became team 7 you told me something. I was going on about how annoying Naruto was, and then you said I was annoying. You said that you had no idea what it was like, being alone. You said it was painful. My question is: if being alone is so painful, then why would you choose to be alone?"

Sasuke sighed. "I already told you that. On the day I left. I'm an avenger. I have to place in my heart for someone else. All I have left is revenge."

Then Sasuke looked deep into her eyes. "Would you take that away from me, Sakura?"

Sakura wasn't sure what to say. So Sasuke went ahead with his question.

"What was that last jutsu you performed yesterday before you passed out?"

Sakura was about to remind him that she didn't pass out, she was poisoned, but refrained from doing so. She smirked. "So you liked me jutsu? I actually invented it. Tsunade just guided me through it. It takes perfect chakra control in order to do it. It's called "Nami no Katsuki". It's a very powerful jutsu. One that would even rival, if not beat, chidori, I would imagine."

"Hn. Whatever. Eat your food."

"Huh? Hey, wait Sasuke! I'm not done with my questions yet!" Sakura made a move to go after him, but her body wouldn't obey her. She groaned in frustration as Sasuke ignored her and quickly left the room. Sakura slumped her head in defeat.

Then the smell of food wafted to her nostrils, making her stomach growl in response. Sakura eagerly took the food, but before she bit into it (even though her mouth was watering) she sniffed it and examined it for poison. _You could never be too cautious, _she reasoned with herself. Then she devoured the meal in a matter of seconds.

Sasuke had also brought a cup of cool water, and Sakura tried her best to conserve the water, not knowing how long it would until her next meal. But her throat was so parched that she couldn't stop herself from drinking all of it.

After she was done she lay back down on the bed, and used the little blanket that was on it to keep warm. She suddenly realized how chilly it was in here. But despite the chill and the throbbing of her ever-present injuries she managed to fall into a deep slumber, one where she didn't dream at all.

**Well please review! Sorry it took me so long to update but it was final week. But don't worry I'm done with finals so I will be updating within a few days! Oh, and I was wondering if anyone could tell me how to indicate a break in the story? You know, like the little line thingy? Because I have to idea…so kudos to anyone who can tell me! Did I mention to review? Because that would also be helpful…anyways TTFN!**

**belle2990**


	3. Wild Animals

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

**Thanks for reviewing! (well, those of you who ACTUALLY review anyways!)**

**I was informed that my summary for this story made no sense at all, so I changed that. Sorry if you guys got confused on it! I humbly apologize and I tried to correct my mistake. If I made any other mistakes please let me know and I will try my best to correct them! Thanks!**

* * *

**Chapter Three: Wild Animals**

Sasuke woke up in a sweat. He looked around for the glass of water that was on his dresser, and when he realized he wasn't in his room he frowned. Realization dawned on him when he remembered that he had given up his room for Sakura. So now he was stuck on a straw pallet and a course, dirty blanket for warmth. He scowled as he tossed and turned, trying to find a comfortable position.

He finally got fed up with it and decided to reclaim his bed for his own. He threw off the offensive material and stalked next door to his bedroom. He opened the door without knocking and entered. Sasuke was about to shake the girl awake when he heard her whimper.

"Sasuke…No!" she was sweating profusely, and he could see that her wounds were bleeding again. "I don't…believe you! Sasuke's not…dead!" She tossed and turned, fighting off invisible enemies. "Sasuke! Sasuke!" By now she was shouting his name.

As Sasuke hovered over her bed, hand outstretched to wake her up, she suddenly shot up, breathing hard.

"Sasuke!" Sakura didn't know where she was. All she could see was a dark figure hovering over her, his arm outstretched as if to attack her. She screamed, but it was cut off as his hand covered her mouth.

"Would you shut up already? You're going to wake up the entire house!"

Sakura's eyes widened when she recognized the voice. _Sasuke…what's he doing here? _she asked herself.

"Are you going to be quiet now?" Sasuke asked in a hiss.

She nodded her head, and Sasuke let go of her.

"That's better." He stood up to his full imposing height as he towered over her.

Sakura glanced at him, and then evaded his eyes as she blushed. "Sasuke…what are you doing here?" she asked quietly.

Sasuke looked down at himself, and then he swallowed quickly, now knowing what she was blushing at. He had forgotten to put his clothes back on and was now sporting his cream-colored shorts…and nothing else.

Sasuke folded his arms over his bare chest. Sakura conveniently made a point to look at her fingers.

"Hn. I want my bed back."

Sakura's eyes shot to his. "Well then where am I supposed to sleep?"

Sasuke shrugged. "Anywhere you want. The bed is mine, however."

Sakura narrowed her eyes. "I thought you said not to leave this room?"

"Hn. I meant anywhere you want _within this room_." Sakura harrumphed as she crawled out of the warm bed and stood shivering while Sasuke usurped her place.

He turned his back to her and ignored her. Soon she heard his even breathing, indicating that he was asleep. Sakura glanced at the door. It was still open. She wondered if she could make a break for it…and took a step towards the door. When she didn't hear anything, she cautiously and noiselessly padded to the door, but before she could leave the room Sasuke spoke.

"I wouldn't do that if I were you. There are many…wild animals…out there that would enjoy having you for breakfast."

Sakura glared, then slammed the door. She made sure she made enough noise as possible as she made her way to the corner of the room and curled up into a little ball. She lay there for a full hour before falling into a fitful slumber.

* * *

Sakura woke up, feeling horrible, with her wounds throbbing. She was surprised, though, that her chakra had already came back to her. She could feel it flowing through her veins. She sighed in contentment as she sent it to her various wounds. Her shoulder wound took the longest and the most chakra to heal.

Once she was done healing she noticed that Sasuke wasn't there. She got up and walked around the small room to get the stiffness out of her limbs. As she was walked around the door opened and Sasuke entered the room.

Sakura's heart immediately began to beat faster, especially when Sasuke came nearer and nearer until they were only a foot apart. Sakura swallowed nervously.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes as he looked her over. "You've healed yourself." It was an observation, not a question.

Sakura nodded, and then rubbed her arms to ward off the goosebumps that arose whenever Sasuke was near. She winced when she rubbed her left arm.

Sasuke saw this, and took her arm in his hands and moved so he could see it. He once again glared as he inspected the wound. "Who did this to you?" he asked.

Sakura hesitated.

"Tell me," Sasuke demanded.

Sakura still wavered. She remembered the last time he had asked her that. The person who had hurt her had gotten both of his arms broken and nearly died, thanks to Sasuke.

"Sakura."

"Sasuke," she said, pulling her arm out of his grasp. "It doesn't matter. It was an accident. He didn't mean to do it."

"Was it the guy who replaced me?"

"Sai? No, it wasn't him. Look, Sasuke-"

"How about that new captain?"

"It wasn't Yamato."

Sasuke's eyes glittered dangerously. "So it was Naruto."

"Sasuke, I told you it's not important."

Sasuke ignored her. "What happened?"

Sakura sighed. She knew that she might as well tell him. He wouldn't stop pestering her about it otherwise. "Well, I guess I'll start at the beginning."

Sakura walked over to the bed, and motioned for Sasuke to do the same. When he didn't move she said, "Please, it's hard for me to concentrate with you towering over me like that."

Sasuke sat down, and when Sakura spoke he didn't look at her, but rather seemed very interested in the opposite wall.

"Thank you," she whispered, and then started her explanation. "Naruto and I were assigned a mission, with Sai acting in your stead and Yamato substituting for Kakashi."

"What happened to Kakashi?" Sasuke asked, interrupting her.

"He was…hurt," Sakura said, not wanting to go into detail. When Sasuke didn't press her for details, she silently thanked him and continued. "We knew that there would be a meeting with an Akatsuki spy on a bridge-"

"How did you know?"

"From my fight with Sasori. Before he died he told me and his grandmother because we defeated him."

Sasuke looked surprised. "You defeated Sasori?"

Sakura nodded. "With the help of his grandmother. Together we took him down." Sakura seemed lost in memories until she was snapped out of it by Sasuke clearing his throat.

"Sorry. Anyways, we met the spy there, but it ended up being Kabuto. Orochimaru also showed up. The Kyuubi ended up taking over Naruto. Four tails appeared that time. I couldn't bare seeing Naruto like that, so I tried to stop him, but got hurt in the process." She gestured to her arm.

"To everyone's surprise Kabuto showed up and healed this. I remember what he said. 'Your side and mine have something in common - Akatsuki's a thorn in our side. As I see it…if you we let you live, there's a chance you might take out another Akatsuki member for us.'" Sakura ended her story and looked at Sasuke. "So you see, it wasn't Naruto's fault. He wasn't it control."

"Hn. He should have been able to control himself from hurting the people he cares about. That's a pathetic excuse."

Sakura looked deep into his eyes. "Do you think so? I think we all do things we don't mean to. We all have demons inside of us, Sasuke. Some of us just know how to deal with them better than others."

Sasuke could sense a deeper meaning entwined in her words, but didn't ask about it.

Sakura smiled then, breaking the serious mood. "Plus, it really doesn't hurt anymore. I can finish healing it by myself." For a demonstration her hand started glowing green, and she touched it to the wound. After a few moments it didn't look as raw, and it looked healed. But the scars were still there.

When Sakura was done, Sasuke stood up. He handed her a pack and said, "Get up and follow me. Unless you'd rather stay here." Sasuke left the room, not looking back. Sakura quickly jumped up and followed him, putting the pack on her back.

Sakura walked quietly behind Sasuke in the dimly lit corridor. It was silent but for the barely audible creak of the lanterns hanging from the ceiling and the steady _drip drip _of the leaky foundation.

Sakura repressed a shudder. It was utterly and completely creepy down here. _How can Sasuke live like this? _she asked herself.

She stared at said boy. _No_, she corrected herself. _Not a boy…yet not a man. _Said boy/man invaded her thoughts as Sasuke led her down a labyrinth of corridors and hallways, all of them dark and cold. It seemed to go on and on to Sakura, but in reality it was only fifteen minutes.

They finally came to a set of stairs, leading to a platform about five square feet and a bolted iron door at the end. Sasuke touched the door with his fingertips.

"Stand back," he ordered. Sakura could see intricate carvings etched into the door. She was about to ask what Sasuke was doing when she heard the high-pitched sound of a thousand birds.

_Chidori? What is Sasuke doing?_ she asked herself.

She could see the electric-blue chakra forming around his hands. Sasuke sent it through his fingertips and so on through the door. When the chidori traveled through it, Sakura could see the carvings moving, almost as if the chidori was unlocking it. The entire process took little more than a minute.

When Sasuke stepped back the heavy metal door swung slowly open, and sunlight filtered through opening. Sakura blinked, and held up her hand in front of her face to shield her eyes from the unexpected light.

Sakura followed Sasuke through the door and outside, the door swinging shut behind them.

Sakura looked at the narrow pathway, barely distinguishable unless you were specifically looking for it. She looked at the surrounding foliage. It was a thick forest, with the trees and plants so close together that you couldn't see past the first layer. The vegetation was wet and tropical, so it must rain a lot here.

"Sasuke, where are we going?"

He didn't look back as he replied. "Sound village."

"Why?"

Sasuke sighed. "Orochimaru sent me to show you around."

Sakura frowned as she jogged to catch up to him. "He sent you? Doesn't he have subordinates to do things like that? I can't imagine you agreeing to something so trivial as that."

Sasuke spared her a glance. "Trivial?" Sasuke smirked as he looked back ahead. "You'll see."

Sakura's frown deepened. _What is Sasuke talking about? _Sakura mulled over this for several minutes, providing Sasuke with the silence he wanted.

Sasuke's thoughts went to his summoning from Orochimaru earlier on that morning.

* * *

"_What do you want?" Sasuke asked, sheer contempt laced through his words._

_Everyone knew that Sasuke was not a morning person. Combine that with severe lack of sleep and an annoying kunoichi and you've got one pissed of shinobi. _

_Kabuto sighed. _

"_Sasuke, you should learn to respect Orochimaru-"_

"_Shut up!" Sasuke growled as he folded his arms over his chest in a defiant stance._

_Orochimaru just grinned his maniacal grin. "Sasuke…"_

_Sasuke spared the Sannin a glance. _

"_I have a mission for you."_

"_A mission?" Sasuke echoed, frowning. _What's up with that? _thought Sasuke. _I never get missions. That's for the sound-nins.

"_What is it?" Sasuke asked._

"_You are to deliver a message to the Hokage. You-"_

"_No."_

_Kabuto stepped in. "Sasuke, don't interrupt Orochimaru like that!"_

"_Hn." Sasuke turned to go._

"_Sasuke," Orochimaru said, making Sasuke stop. "As I was saying, you won't have to enter the village. Just get close enough to send a messenger bird and then you can leave."_

_As much as Sasuke didn't want to agree, he knew that he had to. For now, Orochimaru was in charge. For now._

_After Orochimaru gave Sasuke the message and he memorized it, Sasuke turned to leave. Orochimaru turned to Kabuto._

"_Kabuto."_

"_Hai, Orochimaru?" Kabuto stood at attention._

"_I want you to send the kunoichi to Sound village. Let her get a feel of her new home…and it's inhabitants." Sasuke's ears pricked up and he stopped at the sound of "kunoichi". Orochimaru continued, either not noticing Sasuke's lack of movement or ignoring it. "Have three of the sound nins escort her. And make sure she knows what will happen if she tries to escape." Orochimaru said that last sentence with joyful malice that had Sasuke clenching his fists._

_Sasuke turned around. "Are you really going to send Sakura with a pack of wolves while she is the helpless lamb?"_

_Orochimaru grinned, and Kabuto smirked. "Why Sasuke," Orochimaru crooned. "I didn't know you cared."_

"_Hn. I don't. I just thought you needed her unharmed."_

_Orochimaru shrugged. "I don't care what happens to her as long as she's alive."_

"_But those guys will destroy her!" Sasuke tried to contain his rage, but it overpowered him. He forced himself to calm down and not to show any weaknesses, especially in front of them._

"_That's a risk I'm willing to take." _

_Sasuke inwardly swore. He knew they were goading him. "Hn. I could care less what happens to her. But you risk war with Konoha if she dies. You realize that, right?"_

_Orochimaru sighed. "Fine. Kabuto, you will escort-"_

"_I'll take her."_

"_But, Sasuke, you have a mission."_

_Sasuke shrugged. "She'll come with me."_

_Kabuto narrowed his eyes. "And what's to prevent her from escaping?"_

_Sasuke turned his back to them and walked out of the room. Before he left, however, they heard him say_, _"…I'll kill her myself_._"_

_With the tone that he used they had no doubt that he would._

* * *

Sasuke's thoughts were interrupted when Sakura gasped and grabbed his arm, pointing. "Look Sasuke!"

He looked in the direction she was pointing and frowned. It was a pair of glowing yellow eyes, looking directly at them. He shrugged her off.

"Knock it off! It's just an animal. Ignore it and it won't harm you."

Sakura, not wanting to show she was scared, nodded, and tried her best to ignore the staring eyes.

She held her breath as they walked past them, and, though the eyes followed them, their owner did nothing.

Sakura let out her breath when she could no longer feel them watching her. "Phew! That was close! Now I know what you mean about wild animals."

Sasuke looked at her. "That wasn't one of the 'wild animals' I was referring to."

"What-"

"Never mind. Just be quiet, will you?"

Sakura tried not to let the hurt show in her eyes, but it came anyways. She slumped her head and stared at the ground, fiddling with the front of her shirt.

They continued on the narrow pathway for a full fifteen minutes before Sakura couldn't stand the silence anymore.

"Sasuke?"

Sasuke sighed. Well, he had enjoyed the silence while it lasted. A part of him, buried way down deep, _wanted_, no _craved_, to hear her voice. He squashed that annoying part of him that, no matter what, he could not get rid of.

"What?"

"How much further is it?"

"Not much farther."

"Oh."

After two minutes Sakura was about to ask him the same question again, but abruptly the trees ended, and the road got bigger. Not far into the distance Sakura could see various huts and people milling about.

Sakura got closer to Sasuke as they neared the village. Before they entered the gates, Sasuke stopped her.

"Sakura, take off your Konoha headband."

"Why?"

Sasuke looked at her. "They will not hesitate to kill you, or worse see how much pain you can endure before you succumb to death, if they found out you were a Konoha shinobi."

Sakura's eyes widened. But instead of shaking in fear, as she would have done two years ago, she nodded, and took it off. She placed it in the pack that Sasuke had given her, and then passed through the gates.

Sound village was large, but it was quiet. The only place that was loud was the taverns that they passed. Sasuke paused in front of a rundown building.

"This is where you go to if you need medicinal supplies."

She nodded, memorizing the name and building and position it was in the city.

He crossed the street and paused before another building. He handed her some coins and told her to buy more clothes. He had another errand to run.

Sakura nodded. "Thank you, Sasuke."

Sakura went inside and purchased some new clothes. They were all black and fit her form perfectly.

When she left the store Sasuke wasn't there. Sakura frowned.

She looked both ways and didn't see him anywhere. She started walking back towards the gates when he way was suddenly blocked.

Sakura gasped as she took in the sight. She was surrounded by eight men, all of them leering at her. She looked around for someone to help her, but everyone had cleared the streets at the first sign of a fight.

"Excuse me," Sakura said quietly, trying to go in between two of them. Immediately there arms shot out, barring her way.

"Let me by, please," Sakura gritted out, angry.

One of them sneered. "You're not going anywhere."

Sakura stepped back and assumed a fighting stance. "If you don't let me by I'll be forced to make you."

They all chuckled. "Don't worry. You'll give us a show."

Sakura swallowed. _Where is Sasuke? _she thought desperately. _No! I don't need him! He's not coming! I can do this all by myself! _Her face became determined.

She threw a kunai at all eight of them at once, which they all caught.

Sakura frowned. _This is going to be harder than I thought._

One of them stepped up in front of her. Sakura gathered some of her chakra into her fist and swung towards him. To her surprise he didn't try to move, but rather took the punch.

Sakura grinned. "Gotcha!"

"Hn. Not quite." Sakura's eyes widened when her fist didn't just collide with his cheek, but was absorbed by it. It was like punching gooey mud. It hardened when it engulfed her hand and her forearm.

"What the-" Sakura tugged on her arm, but it wouldn't budge. She didn't want to try and punch it off, on the off-chance that that arm would get stuck too.

Sakura swore. She tugged and tugged, but her arm wouldn't break free. The man whom she had tried to punch and turned entirely into this gooey, sticky substance.

The men around her just laughed.

One of them, apparently the leader, stepped forward. "Mmm. You look tasty." He licked his lips suggestively. Sakura repressed a shudder. _Man this guy's creepy!_

Sakura took out a kunai and began hacking away to get her arm free. But whenever a chunk fell off, a new chunk replaced it right away.

The men slowly advanced towards her. She looked at them. Their eyes all gleamed maliciously. They had a…feral…look to them. As if they were wild animals.

As they drew nearer her, Sakura closed her eyes and began concentrating her chakra into the hand that was caught. _Concentrate. Don't let them intimidate you. Concentrate._

She could feel their shadows on her. She could smell their putrid stench. She could hear their ragged breathing as they closed in for the kill.

She opened her eyes. Chakra shot out of her palm, making the hard substance explode.

She looked the leader square in the eye. "I will not be your prey." She bit out every word, and then spat at him.

"Why you-"

"Is there a problem here?" A cold voice asked. The men surrounding Sakura all turned to face the raven-haired boy.

Sasuke had his arms crossed and had a bored, yet annoyed, look upon his face.

The leader was about to say something, but hesitated when he saw who he was. The man's eyes widened, and sweat beaded his brow.

"We-we were just having a little fun," the man said.

Sasuke sighed. "Do you know who that is?" he asked, indicating Sakura.

The man shook his head.

"She is Orochimaru's new apprentice."

The men's faces blanched and they all took on a look of fear.

"We didn't know. We'll be leaving now." They hurriedly turned to leave, but Sasuke stopped them.

"It would be wise to be cautious in the future."

The leader nodded, and then they all jumped off.

Sakura stood there, still holding a kunai and in a defensive stance. She relaxed when she realized that they were gone.

She wiped her forehead, where she had been sweating. Her hand was throbbing, and so she healed it.

Sasuke sighed. "I can't leave you alone for five minutes without getting into trouble."

"It wasn't my fault! Those men were like-"

"-wild animals?" Sasuke interrupted.

Sakura closed her mouth. _So that's what Sasuke was warning me about. _

Sakura bowed her head. "I'm sorry. I'll be more careful in the future."

Sasuke nodded, and then turned to leave. Sakura quickly caught up to him.

"Sasuke?"

"…"

"Where did you go?" Sakura asked quietly.

"Hn. That's none of your business."

"Oh."

Sasuke looked at the hurt in her eyes. "I went to talk to someone quickly. I thought you wouldn't be done by the time I got back."

It was the closest thing to an apology that Sakura would get. Sakura nodded her head, and smiled.

"Thanks. Don't worry next time, Sasuke. I can take care of myself. I had those guys! You should have seen me! I-"

"Sakura."

"Yes?"

"Save your breath for the journey."

"Journey?" Sakura echoed.

"We're taking a slight detour back home."

"Where to?"

"Konoha."

Sakura stopped. "Does this mean….Does this mean that you're taking me back?"

Sasuke kept going, not looking back. "No. I just have to deliver a message."

"But-"

"Sakura, don't even think of escaping." This time he did turn around and face her. "Like I told Orochimaru. If you attempt to escape, I'll kill you. If you do escape, I'll hunt you down and kill you. Don't try to escape."

Sakura swallowed the lump in her throat. "Sasuke…"

But Sasuke was already turned around and walking away. Sakura hesitated before following him. _Sasuke…what kind of darkness are you in?_

Sakura didn't know the answer to that, but she vowed that she would save him from it.

* * *

**Well here's another chapter! Sorry for the delay. I got a bunch of ideas for other stories and kind of lost my inspiration for this one. But don't worry I'll still finish it! I'm not a quitter! (Plus it pisses me off when authors do that so I would never do that to you guys!) Anyways, special thanks to:**

**FaitaGirl**- I so know what you mean about poorly written fanfics…not saying that mine are any better you know just my opinion after all. Thanks for the compliments (I'm blushing)

**Kunoichi142- **Well I hate it when stories are written horribly so I try not to do that. I try to keep the character in character, but sometimes it's hard to write what you want to write without making them a little OOC so I apologize in advance if I do that. I'm glad that I didn't have any errors! (more balloons and confetti)

**mia14conchelez- **of course I made Sakura tough! I'm sick of her being portrayed as weak and helpless (even though she kind of is in the anime/manga but oh well!) She did get a lot stronger though, so I'm showing that side of her. And I don't think Sakura will ever stop loving Sasuke. She's shown that ever since the beginning of the show, she was willing to die for him (and if that's not love baby I don't know what is!)

**InuyashaLover167-** thanks for answering the question about AU. Wow I'm so behind on those terms! I have to get right on that! And of course Sasuke cares (he just doesn't show it)

**darknesses-light**- Yes a new story by me! I just don't know what to do with myself if I'm not writing a story! I always have all of these ideas swirling around in my noggin so I thought I'd put them to good use! Yes I am finally done with finals and yah I did pretty good! Second highest grade on my history final for all of the classes so I'm psyched about that!

**Neko's Snow**- Sorry if the last chapter was a bit slow. I'll try to put more action and stuff in them! If you have any suggestions you can always tell me (not promising that I'll put them in my story, but at least they're there if I ever need them!)

**rebel-girl-** Hmm…I've never read that story…perhaps I should check it out…What line are you talking about? I apologize if it sounded like I copied or something but I swear I didn't!

**she who loves gaara**- I'm happy that you think it's beautiful!

**Ur2tRoUbLeSoMe90- **Thanks! I'll try to update sooner (but the chapters are a lot longer now so I'm putting a lot of effort into them!)

**C.A.M.E.O.1 and Only**- Oh okay I thought you thought my story was crap or something! (thank you for clearing that up!)

**TinhThuyVan- **Well if Sasuke is mean that means he's in character: ) Don't worry Sakura is brave, she just has her moments!

**Nickel1984-** Thanks!

**M Warrior-** Thank you very much! I will now be putting in the line thingys (do they have a technical name???) Very helpful and hopefully less confusing for you guys now!


	4. Disturbances

**I would like to apologize for my lack of updating sooner (hypocritical of me but hey, who's saying I'm perfect so don't get angry) Plus I do have a life outside of fanfiction but anyways once again I apologize (blame homework and school) **

**Thanks for all of the reviews you guys! On with the story…**

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto (doesn't it get annoying having to say that every chapter???)**

**Another question: If anyone's watched episode 217, the character named Matsuki (Gaara's student); well, is it a boy or a girl? Because I can't tell! (How sad, I know)**

* * *

**Chapter Four: Disturbances**

Sakura stayed a few feet behind Sasuke as they walked. Her heart was still beating and her stomach felt like it had been punched in the gut when she remembered what he had said.

"_Sakura, don't even think of escaping. Like I told Orochimaru. If you attempt to escape, I'll kill you. If you do escape, I'll hunt you down and kill you. Don't try to escape."_

Sakura mentally battled with herself over whether or not Sasuke would actually kill her. She didn't want to find out.

Yet she was still debating over escaping or not. She was so close to Konoha…maybe she could make it there in time. Maybe she could get help and raise the alarm. Maybe they could catch up to Sasuke and bring him home. Maybe…there was too many maybes.

Sakura was so deep in thought that she didn't notice how far behind Sasuke she had fallen. When she looked up he was gone. She started jogging but she came across a split in the path.

"Sasuke!" she yelled. When she didn't hear a response she yelled even louder.

"Sasuke! SASUKE!" _Oh crap!_ she thought as no response came. _What if he thinks I tried to escape? _

Sakura looked from one path to the other. She didn't know which one he had taken.

_Calm down, Sakura. Just look for him using your chakra._

She put her hands together, and searched the surrounding woods for Sasuke's familiar chakra. After a few moments she found it. Apparently it was the right path.

Sakura was about to run towards him when she felt another chakra…a very disturbing one. It was rapidly approaching. She had never felt this chakra before. It was getting closer to her. Sakura's heart started beating like crazy. This person had a chakra level that surpassed herself.

Sakura's eyes snapped open as she felt him coming closer and closer.

Sakura sent chakra into her legs as she ran towards Sasuke. The surrounding foliage was a blur to her as she increased her speed with each step. She was scared. She didn't want to admit it, but she was. Sweat beaded her brow despite the cool wind that stung her face.

She looked back to make sure that person wasn't there. It felt like they were breathing down her neck. When she turned her head to see in front of her she saw a rapidly approaching dark blur. She tried to stop. Too late!

BAM!

* * *

_Five minutes earlier _

Sasuke looked back when he noticed that Sakura had fallen behind. He was going to yell at her to hurry up, but she wasn't there. He frowned.

"Sakura!" he yelled. When no one responded, his heartbeat increased. He could only imagine what horrors could become of her in this horrid place. He called her name again, this time as loud as he could.

Sasuke frowned. _Where the hell is she? _The a thought crept into his mind. _Did she…try to escape? No. I warned her. She knew the consequences. Sakura wouldn't disobey me. She never did in the past. But…she's changed. No, she wouldn't run away. Sakura's stubborn, and she'll stay with me_, he told himself confidently, _because she thinks she can change me. _Now that his pride was soothed, fear replaced smugness. _Something must have happened. Damnit! _He said as he took off in the direction of her chakra. _How could I lose her? She was just here! _He kept seeing Sakura and all of the horrendous things that could happen.

Despite the coolness in the air, sweat ran down his face. Sasuke chided himself. _What the hell is wrong with you? You're acting like you're worried about her or something. _Sasuke ignored the part of him that told himself that he was.

Sasuke looked back for an instant to see how high the sun was. He swore. It was setting. He didn't want to spend the night in these woods. But he also didn't want to travel in the dark. Going back wasn't an option.

As he turned to look forwards he saw a flash of black and pink, and then something crashed into him.

BAM!

They both went flying backwards and skidded to a halt a few feet away.

"What the hell?!" yelled Sasuke, clutching his bleeding nose. Sakura was sporting a red welt on her forehead the size of a baseball.

"OW!" she yelled.

She sat up and laughed at what she saw. Sasuke was in a tangled heap of limbs as he tried to stand up, his nose swollen and bleeding profusely.

Sasuke wiped away the blood and tried to stop the blood flow, but winced when he pinched his broken nose.

"Damnit Sakura! What the hell is wrong with you?!"

Sakura couldn't help it. She held her stomach as she laughed. Sasuke also had a few twigs and leaves stuck in his spiky black hair. Sasuke narrowed her eyes.

"Hn. Don't see what you're laughing at. You don't look so good yourself." Sasuke got up and walked over to Sakura. She finally stopped laughing, wiping away tears of mirth from her jade eyes.

She looked up at Sasuke, who was glaring at her. To her surprise he offered her a hand, and she took it. It was warm and rough, the way she'd always imagined it to be.

"Thanks, Sasuke." She tentatively held a hand up and it started glowing a light green. She searched his eyes for permission. When he didn't say anything, she touched his nose, healing him. Then she ripped off a part of her sleeve and wet it with water from her canteen. She wiped away all of the blood, and then removed all of the twigs and leaves from his hear. It was surprisingly soft.

Sasuke just stood there, not moving. She was so close. He could smell her sweet scent, see her eyes twinkle and genuine concern and tenderness in her gaze. No one ever looked at him like that. No one ever…cared for him, like she did. Sasuke's cheeks felt warmer, but he told himself that it was getting hotter outside and not because of the pink-haired kunoichi standing inches away from her.

Sakura's face was inches from his own.

"Sasuke…" she whispered. He saw her eyes slowly close as her face got closer to his. Sasuke stood rooted to the spot as her face got closer and closer to his. His mouth felt dry and his eyes weighed a ton as they drifted down.

He could feel her warmth breath on his lips as she pressed her soft lips to his. Sasuke was too shocked to do anything. They stood like that for what seemed like forever before Sakura pulled away.

Sakura's eyes were wide. She backed away from him as she touched her lips.

"Sasuke…"

Sasuke's eyes were also wide.

Sakura continued to stare at him in wonder.

After a minute of just staring Sasuke finally shook himself. "Where the hell were you?" To Sasuke, it was easier to get angry than to delve into his emotions. It disturbed him they way that Sakura could get to him.

Sakura blinked. Her hand fell down. "W-what?"

Sasuke took a threatening step towards her. "Were you escaping?" His eyes glittered dangerously.

"Sas-Sasuke! No! I give you my word, I just fell behind!"

"Hn. How can I believe you?"

Sakura's eyes face became determined. "You know that I would never abandon you! I swore to bring you home and that's what I'm going to do!"

Sasuke knew that she was telling the truth. He hadn't believed that she had run away in the first place. He was just trying to change the subject…well, before Sakura tried to make something out of their kiss…that meant absolutely nothing to him. Or so he tried to tell himself.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "Hn. Whatever. Hurry up. We've wasted enough time as it is."

He turned around and started walking towards the setting sun.

Sakura instantly followed him, but didn't walk beside him like she normally would have. She didn't want him to see how much he had hurt her.

_Did I really just kiss Sasuke? _she asked herself. _I can't believe I did! And he didn't even say anything! Am I a bad kisser? Oh my-_

"Sakura."

"Yes, Sasuke?"

"It was nice."

Sakura's jade eyes went wide. Sakura knew it wasn't wise to press him any further. She wondered if he had said it at all, or if she had just imagined it. Probably the latter. The Sasuke she knew would never have said anything like that.

Sakura walked faster to catch up to him. They walked in silence until Sasuke told Sakura to set up the tent. He went off to gather some firewood to start a fire with.

Sakura had pitched the tent and taken out some dried food and water for dinner. It wasn't much, but it was better than nothing.

Sasuke's thoughts were plagued by a certain pink-haired kunoichi. He couldn't believe that she had kissed him. No, he corrected. What he couldn't believe was that he had actually _let_ her. Sasuke shook his head and groaned. He didn't know what the heck was wrong with him anymore.

* * *

_Two hours later_

Sakura sat on the ground and leaned against a log. She had stared at the fire for too long and now her vision was blurry. She blinked a few times to clear away the haziness.

She then looked at what little sky she could see from under the canopy of trees. Crickets were chirping nearby, and she could hear the night noises.

Sasuke had gone off long ago. He hadn't said where he was going, so Sakura assumed that he was on watch duty.

Sakura sighed. She wanted to talk to him, especially about what she had done today. To her surprise she wasn't embarrassed about it. Sakura felt proud about that, too. It was a sign of her maturity. But she began to worry about Sasuke. He hadn't pulled away, but he hadn't kissed her back. He had just…stood there. It confused Sakura. She didn't know what to say. She wouldn't apologize, or express regret. She had saved her first kiss for him, and she wanted him to continue being her firsts. First kiss, first boyfriend, first love. She had never felt that way about anyone before. Her first crush had turned into her first which had turned into her first love, her _only _love. Sakura knew that no one could replace Sasuke.

The object of her thoughts suddenly appeared before her.

"Sakura."

"Yes, Sasuke?" She was looking up at him. He was standing, which made it hard to see his face.

Sasuke knew she was uncomfortable with him towering over her, but it made him feel more comfortable. He could say and do things a lot better without being eye-to-eye with her.

"Tomorrow we'll be traveling fast, so get some rest."

Sakura nodded. "Okay." She stretched and yawned. "I was on my way to bed anyways. Wake me up when it's my turn to keep watch."

"Heal yourself first. You're going to need as much chakra as you can the next few days."

"Heal myself?" Sakura asked, confused.

Sasuke squatted down in front of her. He raised his hand and gently touched the welt on her forehead. His probing shot pain through it, and Sakura remembered that she had gotten it when they'd ran into each other. She had been so preoccupied with thoughts of kissing Sasuke that she'd completely forgotten about it.

"Oh," she said, touching it. She winced. _That is a nasty bruise_, she thought. She gathered chakra into her hand and healed it quickly.

Sasuke was still squatting in front of her, watching her. He kept his eyes on her hand, which was glowing a light green color.

"Sakura…"

"Yah?"

"Tell me about your jutsu." It wasn't a demand; it was a request.

Sasuke moved to sit beside her.

"You mean the one I used against Kabuto?"

He nodded.

"Tsunade taught me how to control my chakra to perfection. You need to, in order to be a medic-nin. Remember Neji, and his Byakugan?" Sasuke nodded. "He explained to me the chakra points and the complex chakra system. With Tsunade's help in training, and Neji's information, I was able to summon all of my chakra to my chakra points, and when I'm done building them up, I release the chakra from every chakra point simultaneously. There is so much chakra and power, that when I emit my chakra in that form, a sonic boom follows. The chakra takes on the form of a wave. It is a very dangerous jutsu to my opponents, for there is no escaping it. It travels a full 360 degrees from my body, so anyone within 3,000 feet will be affected by it. But if I concentrate hard enough, I can shift my chakra to miss something, or someone. However, like I told you before, it takes all of my chakra, so I should only use it if the success rate is 100, or if I have nothing left. It's a very complex jutsu, but I wanted a jutsu I could call my own. With assistance from Tsunade and Neji, of course."

Sasuke didn't say anything. He was far beyond impressed that she had created a jutsu this powerful. Well, she was always surprising him. Like she did today.

She had actually kissed him. His usually focused mind was still stuck on that fact. He spared her a glance. She yawned again. He told her to go to bed.

She nodded, but not before grumbling something about him asking her a question in the first place. Before she went inside the tent, she whispered, "Good night, Sasuke," to him.

He didn't say it back. He never did. Why would he start now? Just because someone was showing him affection he hadn't felt in over two years did not give her the right to think that she should get special treatment for it. As he sat staring into the darkness, he couldn't help but want to feel her lips against his again. _Just as an experiment, _he told himself. He had to know if it had been just as good as he remembered, or if it had been some type of fluke. He looked towards the tent. He thought about kissing her in her sleep, so that she wouldn't know and he didn't have to explain himself. But he rejected that plan as soon as he had come up with it. He may not be honorable, but he did _have _honor. And that part of him couldn't sit with the idea that he would be taking advantage of her, of the situation.

He sighed. In the words of a former comrade, "Women are troublesome."

* * *

Sakura woke up when Sasuke gently shook her awake. She rubbed the sleep from her eyes and sat up, stretching and yawning. They didn't exchange words when they traded places, but Sakura felt the coldness of the night and wished that Sasuke was there to keep her warm. Sasuke couldn't help but smell her scent as he lay down where she'd been lying, and feel the remnants of her warmth. He breathed it in, and a ghost of smile formed on his lips as he drifted off into unconsciousness.

* * *

Sasuke awoke when he heard a scream. He was out of bed and outside in an instant.

He unsheathed Kusanagi and looked around for Sakura. He smelt blood in the air, and his heart froze when he saw Sakura clutching her leg, blood dripping on the ground.

* * *

**Sorry for the cliffy but I am way tired and I have lots of homework. Once again I apologize for the slow update. I'll try to be faster in the future! Review please!**

**Laura-** Thanks so much! pops collar Well, I try. : )

**Shelan**- Same as Laura : )

**sakuraXgaara15**- Wow thanks! Sorry for the not-so-soon update. Shame on me! I will try to update faster! At least I didn't wait a month like some authors! Anyways if you ever do get suggestions, I'm already here.

**StrawLate-** catches confetti Yay! I love parties… : ) Thank you!

**Neko's Snow-** Sorry I didn't write about Konoha in this chapter! But just to let you know Sasuke and Sakura will not actually be going into Konoha. They just have to get close enough to send a message.

L**il Devil 66-** Eh, like you said it is VERY hard to keep the characters in character. Especially Sasuke, because he keeps surprising me in the manga and anime. Well, thank you! And I apologize for the OOCness in Sai and Naruto. And don't make my eat those gummy bears! (those do sound good) : )

**BlondeKell-** Well, you know that Sakura had been hanging out with Naruto before all of this! Don't worry, I sincerely doubt Sasuke is going to kill Sakura. Unless I make it happen. (I love the feeling of power) : )

**TinhThuyVan-** Sasuke is supposed to be mean! That's how his character is. But he'll soften up some.

**ForeheadKAT-** What do you mean he's out of his league? And sorry but there aren't any hookers in my story. He'll have to settle for Sakura.

**majinme- **Thank you!

**SORAxANDxKAIRIx4EVERx0508-** You have a really long name. Just thought I'd point that out. Well, what did you think?

**PInK cuTie KaGomE-micael m-** What's a good story without a little drama? (especially with teenagers) Of course they're cute! That's what makes them my favorite!

**Ur2tRoUbLeSoMe90-** yes I know he's mean but I'm trying to keep him in character…for the time being anyways. Thank you!!!

**C.A.M.E.O.1 and Only-** Who knows what will happen? Maybe they'll leave her alone…but I'm guessing since they were terrified of Orochimaru and Sasuke, plus Sakura herself, they won't try to attack her again. I can't say the same thing for everyone (hint hint) And I honestly don't know if Sasuke's perverted voice with come out…if it will it will most likely just be in his mind (the italics)

**heartlessoul- **Thank you! I tried really hard!

**InuyashaLover167-** There's always hope for him! Especially with someone like Sakura on his side…But just to let you know Sasuke and Sakura will not actually be going into Konoha. They just have to get close enough to send a message.

**darknesses-light-** Thanks! I'm glad I did good too! It will be very interesting indeed…I wonder what will happen: )

**Mel-** I like Sakura too! Thank you!

**Icycrystel-** blushes furiously Wow thank you! Here was your update! I'll be updating within a few days so I hope you look forward to it!

* * *


	5. I'll Be Back

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

**Thanks for the reviews! **

**Chapter Five: I'll Be Back**

Sasuke stared at Sakura in shock. She was panting, as if she had been fighting for awhile. She was clutching her leg, and blood was dripping on the ground.

Sasuke took a step forward to assist her, but she stopped him.

"No, Sasuke. This is my fight. You don't have to defend me anymore."

She grasped the kunai sticking out of her leg and pulled it out, careful not to injure herself more. She hissed at the pain, and tears sprung to her eyes. But she didn't let them drop as she threw the kunai aside.

Her hand started glowing green and she started to heal herself. Just after she managed to clot the blood, a kunai was thrown at her and Sakura was forced to jump aside, making her abandon her attempt at healing herself.

Sasuke's eyes searched for her attacker, but he couldn't see past the darkness.

"Sharingan!" he yelled. He gritted his teeth as the curse mark responded. He willed it to recede, but it was still hovering on the brink of taking over him.

He heard Sakura panting from exertion, and he heard her swear. _Since when does Sakura swear? Not that I care, _he hastily added in his mind. His attention shifted to trying to locate the attacker.

He saw Sakura pull another kunai out of her shoulder, and decided enough was enough. It was time to intervene before he went crazy.

He jumped in front of Sakura and deflected a kunai that was aimed at her heart.

"Sasuke! Stay out of this!" Sakura gritted her teeth against the pain as a wave of dizziness washed over her.

"Shut up, Sakura. Just heal yourself." Sasuke didn't look back. "I've got you covered!"

Sakura knew that she couldn't go on unless she healed herself. She willed herself not to respond, and went about healing her massive wounds. She cursed silently to herself. It was going to take a lot of chakra.

Sasuke's blood red eyes roved every which way, trying to locate and identify the assailant. Sasuke heard the boom of thunder. He hadn't noticed the storm clouds coming their way until now. He had been too preoccupied with thoughts of a certain pink-haired annoying kunoichi.

Kunai were thrown at him. He caught them and threw them in the direction they had come in. He didn't hear a grunt to indicate that they had found their mark.

Sasuke's eyes were adjusting to the darkness now. The fire had burned low. Sakura was obviously too preoccupied to put wood on it.

Thunder boomed again, this time closer and louder. Clouds blocked the sky so the stars were no longer visible, making the night darker and darker. The moonlight disappeared, and so did the fire when the sky opened up to pelt the helpless victims on the ground with rainwater.

Sakura looked up at the rain. She had mostly healed herself. No more kunais were thrown at them for a full two minutes. They just stood there, panting, the rain pummeling them mercilessly.

Sakura started shivering. Then a bolt of lightning struck across the sky. It temporarily illuminated the grounds, and Sasuke saw a dark figure in the distance. He threw a kunai at him, but the light was instantly replaced by darkness.

"Sasuke, I saw him."

Sasuke nodded. "I did too."

Then another kunai came hurtling towards Sakura. She would've dodged it but that would've meant that Sasuke got a kunai in the back, so she deflected it instead. It was getting harder to see between the rain and the darkness.

Another bolt of lightning followed quickly by thunder.

This time they didn't see the figure.

Sakura's heart was beating fast. She didn't know where he was. It was the same dangerous chakra that she had sensed earlier on in the day. Sakura shuddered when she remembered what had happened.

* * *

_Sakura leaned against the tree and yawned. Man, she was tired. The cool night breeze gently ruffled her hair, which was still short. She hadn't grown it out yet as a symbol of her newfound bravery. Long hair was for the past Sakura. The one that was weak. _

_Her thoughts turned back to the day she cut her hair. Sasuke had acted like he…cared…on that day. _

_Sakura shook her head. She wasn't going to think about the past. All she had was the future. _

_Sakura could feel her eyelids drooping. She fought to keep them open, but they were so heavy._

_Just when she was about to lose consciousness her heart started pounding. Her senses went haywire. Her eyes went wide. _It…it's the same chakra from before…that disturbing, dangerous chakra, _she thought. _

_It was rapidly approaching. And just when it was almost to her, it disappeared. _

"_What the- guh!" Sakura hissed in pain as the kunai entered her thigh. She stood up on her good leg and searched wildly for her assailant, but it was too dark. _

_She was about to wake up Sasuke when something stopped her. She didn't want him to know that she was unable to take care of things without him. Sakura gritted her teeth against the pain and clutched her leg, eyes roving to find her attacker._

_She couldn't sense his chakra and swore. _He must have masked his chakra_, she thought._

_She felt a rustling behind her, and a deep, silky voice whispered in her ear. "Well, well. Uchiha's got himself a pretty one here."_

_Sakura's heart stopped. When a cold hand touched her shoulder, she screamed bloody murder. The man swore, and put a hand over her mouth. _

"_Shhh. We don't want Uchiha spoiling our fun, do we?" he asked silkily._

_Sakura shuddered, and then sent her chakra to her elbow and rammed it into his stomach. She heard a satisfying grunt, and he let go of her. She spun around to see who it was, but he was gone. Sakura was breathing hard, and trying to ignore the pain in her leg._

_Then Sasuke came out. She swore. She didn't want him involved. The man attacked _her._ This was _her _fight. _

_Sasuke took a step forward, and Sakura stopped him._

"_No, Sasuke. This is my fight. You don't have to defend me anymore," she said._

* * *

"Sasuke, you know him."

Sasuke didn't look at her. He didn't want to see her blood. It was driving him crazy. Even though she had healed herself, he could still hear the pain in her voice.

"How?" he responded, searching for him in the darkness.

"I don't know, but he said, 'Well, well. Uchiha's got himself a pretty one here.' So he must know you somehow."

Sasuke jaw clenched when he heard this. "He didn't…touch you…did he?" Sasuke still didn't look at her. Though his voice remained cool, Sakura wondered if his eyes held concern for her.

"No, Sasuke. Not in the way you mean." Sasuke couldn't stop the relieved sigh. It was hard enough holding back the curse knowing that he hurt her, but if he had touched her in any way, then Sasuke would have been lost.

Another bolt of lightning struck the sky, followed quickly by thunder. During the moment when the forked bolt lit up the sky, Sasuke and Sakura saw a man standing about thirty feet away from them, a black robe with flashes of red on it billowing in the wind, and a straw hat. They could faintly hear, above the roar of the storm, the tinkling of the chains hanging off of his hat. All they saw was a flash, but it was enough.

"Akatsuki!" Sakura gasped.

Sasuke was about to charge again, when the heard a voice on the wind whisper, "I'll be back for you, Uchiha, and you're pretty friend."

Sasuke froze. _They wanted Sakura too?_ he thought. _But why would anyone want Sakura? Other than Orochimaru and his sadistic ways…_

Sasuke finally got over his shock and looked at Sakura. She looked about every emotion…sad…amazed…shocked…scared…anger.

Sasuke felt more confused than he had in a long time. He felt the need to provide Sakura with some sort of comfort. He told himself he didn't want an emotional girl on his hands.

"Sakura, don't worry. I won't let them get to you."

Sakura's eyes widened in surprise. "I didn't know you cared, Sasuke."

"Hn. I don't. I just don't want to have to deal with an emotional female right now."

"You have an excuse for everything, don't you?" Sakura asked, her voice raising.

Sasuke didn't answer her, but rather looked at her. His blood red eyes were now black obsidian. Sakura hobbled forwards, towards him. Sasuke didn't move.

"Sasuke…you of all people should know this. You don't know what you until it's gone. I would hate for you to take people who care about for granted. After you betrayed Konoha they are few and far between. Stop pushing me away when you need me the most!" Sakura had grabbed onto Sasuke's shirt and pulled them closer so that she was in his face, but she was talking quietly. When she said the last sentence tears formed in her eyes.

When Sasuke just looked at her, not responding, Sakura shook him. "Damn you! You are so cold! I still don't understand why I love you but I do!" She let go of him and pushed him away. She stopped yelling, and spoke in a quiet, broken voice. "I have ever since our first real mission. We were traveling to the Land of Waves, escorting Tazuna, the bridge builder, home. On the road we were attacked by two ninjas. I froze when they came at me, but I still tried to protect Tazuna. Before they could reach me, though, you stepped in front of me. I…I thought you hadn't cared at all. But when you saved me, putting yourself between me and danger, I thought that there was hope."

Sakura felt the tears falling down her cheeks, and she hastily wiped them away. She looked at Sasuke, who was looking down. Sakura became angry again. "Sasuke, I know that deep down you care." She started shouting at him again, and grabbed the front of his shirt, and brought his face down to hers. "Let go of your hatred, Sasuke. It's going to destroy you and those who care about you." She whispered this, and her face came to closer to his. Sasuke knew what she was going to do and grabbed her hands and shoved her away before she could kiss him again. It took all of his willpower to do so. He hated the way she let out a choked sob, hated the way he treated her. _It's for her own good, _he told himself, if anything just to comfort the fact that he hated himself.

But Sakura wouldn't give up. "Sasuke, please. Just let it go. Revenge won't bring back your clan! It won't help anyone!"

Sasuke turned to walk away from her. Sakura limped after him, stifling the urge to cry out in pain. "Sasuke! If you let Orochimaru win, it could be the end of us all! He'll attack Konoha, and all of your old friends and your comrades!"

Sasuke kept on walking. Sakura tried to keep up, but her leg gave out and she fell to ground. She gritted her teeth and sat up. "Sasuke, I'll die if you leave me again."

This time Sasuke did stop. He turned around. "Sakura, go back to camp and sleep. You'll just tire yourself out and then I'll have to slow down. We're leaving at sunrise."

Sakura sat there in the rain, not caring how much she was shivering. It hurt like a dagger to her heart that he was so cold, that he couldn't say any kind words to her. She clutched her heart and cried. She put a hand over her face to shield him from view, so she wouldn't have to see him leaving her again. When she finally stopped crying she felt light headed, and when she tried to stand she swayed. Just as she was about to fall, a pair of arms encircled her, holding her steady.

She felt herself being carried. She looked up at Sasuke. Rain poured over the both of them.

"Sasuke…thank you."

He didn't say anything, but his arms tightened his hold on her. It was enough for Sakura. For all his cold ways, Sasuke really did care.

"Sasuke, what are we going to do? That was an Akatsuki member that attacked me. He said he'll be back." Sakura yawned. "Did you get a look at who he was?"

"No."

"Oh." Sakura's eyes closed. She slept, heedless of the pounding rain and the pounding of a heart.

* * *

Sakura woke up in the tent. She yawned and stretched. Her muscles were sore, and she began healing them again. She got out of the tent and walked around, the sunshine pouring over her. It made the droplets on everything glisten in the morning light.

Sakura looked for Sasuke, but he was nowhere to be seen.

Sakura went about picking up their camp. She was ready to go in five minutes. Just as she was getting impatient Sasuke jumped down from a tree.

"Where were you?" Sakura asked.

"Nowhere."

"Hmph. Fine. So, are we almost to our destination?"

"If we hurry through this cursed place."

Sakura nodded. They traveled swiftly from tree to tree, taking only one break. When the sun was in the middle of the sky they took a break and ate a little bit of food.

Sakura didn't say much, and Sasuke didn't say anything at all. At sundown Sasuke stopped her.

"We'll stop here for the night."

Sakura nodded and went to set up camp, but Sasuke stopped her. "We'll be sleeping under the stars tonight."

"O-okay." Sakura didn't mind. She loved falling asleep under the stars. But it made her feel uncomfortable, knowing that there was an Akatsuki member out to get Sasuke…and apparently her, too. She didn't know why, either.

Sakura didn't think much more on it when she yawned, and quickly fell asleep. Sasuke did the same, but kept himself awake. He just dozed so he could rest and rejuvenate.

* * *

"Hmm…this just keeps getting better and better. I'll have to report this to the leader right away." The dark-robed figure jumped off into the night, holding on to his straw hat and listening to it jingle in the wind.

* * *

**Sorry for the late update. I had to catch up on sleep because I didn't get any sleep last night (I had my b-day party) so don't hate me. So here's the update! Sorry guys I really don't want to respond to every review, but I'll respond to a few of them. Please review! They are very much appreciated…I'm glad everyone likes my story! Ooooh….see if you can guess which Akatsuki member attacked them????** **If people guess right I might update sooner! (Okay sorry it that's blackmail or a bribe) : ) So anyways. Review!**

**Kunoichi142-** I made the jutsu up myself! I feel very proud that I actually made one up. But I wanted to make Sakura have a really cool jutsu because everyone else did. Sorry she didn't really show off her stronger side. Don't worry, Sakura will kick some major but in the future!

**KagomeEschra-** Thank you very much! I'm glad you like it!

**Sakura-Blossom-Lover **and **darknesses-light- **Thank you for informing me on Matsuki's gender. I feel bad that I couldn't tell…well now hopefully Gaara has someone to love!

**Wind Raven Dragon- **Wow I didn't think I was that good. Well, thank you!


	6. Search

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

**Thanks for the reviews!**

* * *

**Chapter Six: Search**

_Konoha Village_

_Hokage Building_

Naruto crossed his arms stubbornly. He was mumbling something about stubborn grannies when the Hokage slammed her fist down.

"Naruto! Shut up! I've sent out four different ANBU squads and they still haven't found a trace. Tsunade was beyond annoyed at Naruto. She was pissed. He had come by every day to badger her about finding Sakura. Tsunade remembered when they had first arrived back from the unsuccessful mission, one member missing in action.

* * *

"_Tsunade!" Shizune burst into the Hokage's office. _

_Tsunade looked up from her paperwork. "Yes, Shizune?"_

"_Team 7's back from their mission!"_

_Tsunade put folded her hands together in front of her face and nodded. "Send them in."_

_Sai, Yamato, and Naruto all entered, all leaning on each other for support. Tsunade sighed and waved them off. "Go to the hospital. Sakura will give me the details of the mission." Then Tsunade frowned. "Did Sakura not heal you?"_

_The boys exchanged glances, not sure how to say it. Yamato spoke up. _

"_Sakura is MIA. She was taken by Sasuke to bring to Orochimaru." He spoke in his ANBU tone, but his eyes held concern for his missing student._

_Tsunade swallowed the lump in her throat, and tried to keep the tremor out of her voice. Her face remained impassive. "Tell me what happened."_

_Yamato described in detail what had occurred. When he was finished Tsunade dismissed him, telling him to go to the hospital. She also sent Naruto. Sai looked to be in the best condition of all. As he turned to leave, Tsunade stopped him._

"_Sai, you stay. I want to hear your uptake on the mission."_

_Sai felt nervous for the first time in awhile. He debated on whether or not to tell her he'd almost betrayed Konoha and destroyed their mission. He decided that lies would only do more damage than the truth. _

_He spent an hour being interrogated by the Hokage. Once he was done and Tsunade was satisfied she sent him to the hospital as well. _

_Tsunade put her face in her hands. Shizune, who had been quietly standing in the background holding Ton-Ton, approached her quietly._

"_Tsunade, what are you going to do?"_

_Tsunade sighed. "Shizune, gather ANBU squad 4, and bring them here."_

"_Hai, Tsunade." Shizune rushed out to do the Hokage's bidding._

* * *

Every ANBU team had come back without a trace. It was as if Sakura had just…vanished. Kakashi had even sent Pakkun with them, but her scent just stopped. Each time the missions were unsuccessful, Tsunade went home and cried. She remembered her younger brother and her lover. She still missed them terribly. Sakura and Naruto were the first people, besides Shizune, that she had grown attached to here. She held respect and even affection for her fellow villagers and shinobi, but Naruto had been another little brother to her. And Sakura…she had been like a little sister. The daughter that she never had. She had been a good pupil, the best any sensei could ever ask for.

Tsunade felt so hopeless, that she couldn't do anything. Just like when her brother and lover died. And when she saw Naruto's determined gaze to help his friend almost made her send him off to do just that.

* * *

And here Naruto was now, asking her for the umpteenth time to send him to search for Sakura.

"Granny Tsunade please!" Naruto yelled. "I'm going to go anyways, so you might as well make it easier on yourself and make it a mission!"

Tsunade replied in a calm voice. "Naruto, you realize that if you leave here you will be branded a traitor, and your dreams of becoming Hokage would vanish?"

"I don't care! I'm not going to abandon Sakura! Kakashi-sensei told us long ago that ninja who break the rules are scum, but ninja who abandon their friends are worse than scum! Well, I'm not scum! And nor will I ever abandon my friends! That's my nindo, my ninja way!"

Tsunade sighed. After days of hearing this speech, she was sick of it. "Naruto, if I let you go you cannot complain with who I assemble as your team, or your team leader."

Naruto nodded eagerly, happy that he had finally won.

* * *

Ten minutes later a team of four ninja were assembled in the Hokage office: Naruto, Hinata, Shikamaru, and Sai.

Tsunade briefed them on their mission. "This will be a squad of five, with Shikamaru as your leader. Your mission is to locate and bring back Sakura. However, if the situation becomes too dangerous for your capabilities, you are to report back here immediately. I do not want any unnecessary injuries, is that clear?"

"Hai!"

"Any questions?"

Shikamaru stepped forward. "Hokage, who is the fifth member?"

As if on cue, a knock sounded at the door. "Come in!" Tsunade bellowed.

Shikamaru turned around and his heart started to beat just a little faster.

"Temari!"

The sand-nin grinned. "I'm here to repay a debt to Konoha, and more importantly to Sakura. She helped me when my brothers were in trouble, and saved Kankuro's life."

Shikamaru nodded at her in greeting, and she nodded back.

"That's what took me so long to organize this mission, Naruto. The Sand shinobi had a debt to pay." Naruto nodded, understanding. Tsunade dismissed them, and they all bowed quickly and left.

* * *

Sasuke and Sakura had been traveling for a few hours. Sasuke looked at his surroundings.

"This is close enough," Sasuke stated. Sakura nodded and gratefully took a break. Sasuke took out a whistle that Orochimaru had given him, and blew it. They waited. A half an hour later (while Sakura was dozing off) a white messenger bird circled them. Sasuke held out his arm, and the bird landed on it. Sasuke tied a message to its leg, and told it a destination. It flew off into the sky, quickly becoming a black dot.

Sasuke shouldered his pack and said, "Let's go."

Sakura quickly scrambled to her feet. "That's it?" she asked.

"Yes. Hurry up or you'll be left behind."

"But I thought-"

"Sakura, our mission was to get close enough to send a bird with a message from Orochimaru to Konoha. That was it."

Sakura looked behind her as they walked in the opposite direction the bird had taken. "You mean-"

"No, Sakura. We're still a couple of days away from Konoha. You wouldn't be able to get their on your own. Unless you want to get lost and die, or have my capture you and die, I suggest you just shut up and listen."

"Y-yes, Sasuke." Sakura bowed her head and kicked a pebble.

Sasuke regretted his harsh words but knew that nothing else would get to her. She didn't realize the danger that she was in, just being with him. Or maybe she did now, seeing as how an Akatsuki member had targeted her last night. Why, he still did not know.

"Sasuke?"

"Hn?"

"Do we really have to go back so soon?" Sakura asked quietly.

"Sakura, we're late as it is. Orochimaru will be wondering where we are." Sasuke sighed. He didn't want to go back either. Oh, he knew he had to go back eventually. He needed the power Orochimaru could give him. As much as he tried to squash that feeling inside of him, he knew that he missed Konoha. And a certain kunoichi in it…Hell, he even missed the loud-mouth Naruto and his former sensei, Kakashi.

Sasuke mentally battled with himself. He had severed those bonds. They would only hinder him on the path that he had chosen. He had been so absorbed in his thinking that he hadn't seen the kunai that was coming straight towards him.

"Sasuke!" His senses went haywire as he felt danger. He didn't have enough time to react, and he thought he saw his death mirrored in the kunai as it seemed to come at him in slow motion. Then he saw a silver blur out of the corner of his eye, and the death kunai fell to the ground, stopped by the kunai Sakura had thrown.

Sasuke looked around for the perpetrator. He heard a chuckle, and the rustle of bushes as an Akatsuki member stepped out. He fingered the straw hat so that it covered his face.

Sasuke and Sakura assumed defensive stances.

"Who are you?" Sakura demanded.

"Wouldn't you like to know?" Sakura recognized the voice as belonging to the one who had attacked her the previous night.

To her surprise the man took off his hat, revealing a high ponytail with dark blond hair and bangs that covered up his left eye.

Sakura breathed a little faster. She hadn't seen this one, but had heard about him from Naruto. This was the one who had defeated Gaara, but Naruto had said that he and Kakashi had defeated him.

"You're Deidara, correct?" Sakura asked.

He grinned. "I'm flattered that you know me, Sakura."

Sakura's hands formed into tight fists. "How do you know me?"

"Oh, I know all about you and your abilities. Our leader is very interested in you."

"Why?" Sakura demanded. Sasuke just kept silent, watching and waiting.

Deidara shrugged his shoulders. "If you come with me I'll tell you."

Sakura snorted. "You think I'm that stupid?"

"No, I think you're that smart. If you come without a fight, things will go a lot easier on you."

Sasuke stepped in front of her. "She's not going anywhere," he growled, activating his Sharingan.

"Is that supposed to scare me? Frankly, I'm not impressed. I've witnessed what Sharingan is capable of. You haven't even scratched the surface. Perhaps you should follow your brother's advice-" He was cut off as Sasuke charged him.

He had him pinned against the tree with a kunai pressed to his throat in less than a second. "Don't ever mention him unless you have a death wish."

Deidara smirked. "A little touchy, are we, hmmm?"

Sasuke punched him in the gut. Deidara laughed as he coughed up blood. "So this is what the youngest Uchiha is made of? Don't make me laugh."

This time it was Sasuke who smirked. "So you want to see what I'm made of?"

Sasuke released Deidara and jumped back. He jerked his head slightly, indicating for Deidara to "bring it on."

Deidara held out a palm of his hand. Sasuke was about to attack when Sakura interrupted him.

"Sasuke, be careful! He makes clay animals from the mouths in the palm of his hands. He can manipulate the clay and make it explode!"

Sasuke nodded.

Deidara smiled. "I knew she was smart. Not just anyone could've defeated Sasori."

Sasuke flung a kunai at Deidara. "Pay attention to me! I am your opponent!"

Deidara looked at him, and sighed. "As much as I'd like to shut that mouth of yours, Uchiha, I'm afraid that you'll have to live to fight another day."

Before Sasuke could reply there was an explosion right beside him, and Sasuke was knocked into a tree with such force that the tree was blown right out of the ground. His head slumped forward, as his vision blurred and blood trickled down the side of his head. He faintly heard someone yell his name. He tried to move but a tree pinned his leg to the ground.

He looked around for Sakura and her monstrous strength, but he saw her on the ground, dazed. He was about to call her name when he saw something running towards her.

"No…" he whispered, but it was too late.

* * *

"Are we there yet?" asked an agitated Naruto.

Shikamaru sighed. "No, Naruto. We're traveling as fast as we can."

"We've been traveling for three days!" Naruto growled. He looked back. "Hinata! Do you see anything?"

"Byakugan!" Hinata scanned the area. "I don't see any trace of her…wait!"

The group of five stopped. Hinata concentrated more chakra into her Byakugan. "I-I saw an explosion up ahead!"

"What?!" Naruto exclaimed.

Hinata pointed in the direction. "Approximately a mile away!"

"Can you see anyone else?" Shikamaru inquired.

Hinata shook her head. "No, it's too far away."

"Well, what are we waiting for? Let's go see who it is!" Naruto yelled.

Shikamaru sighed. "Naruto, I'm the captain of this mission, and I'll say what it is we do."

Naruto rubbed the back of his head and grinned sheepishly. "Oh…right."

Shikamaru informed his team, mustering all of the authority he could into his voice. "We will go and see who it is."

Everyone else just sweat dropped, but nodded and said, "Hai!"

* * *

Sakura was flung backwards from the explosion, but it only dazed her. Her pack, which had just been strapped to one shoulder, had been separated from her when the force of the blast threw knocked her away. She saw something fall out of her pack out of the corner of her eye, but it was soon forgotten as she landed on the hard ground and had the wind knocked out of her. Sakura shook her head to wake herself up.

Just as she was about to get up, she saw a clay animal come racing towards her. In the blink of an eye it exploded and the force of the impact between herself and a few trees completely knocked her out.

Deidara smirked. "That was a little disappointing. I expected more of a challenge than that. Oh well, at least I got what I came for." He picked Sakura up like a sack of potatoes and threw her over his shoulder. He called his clay bird, and off he went into the setting sun.

* * *

Hinata gasped. "There was another explosion!"

Shikamaru nodded. "I could hear it."

"Hinata, can you see anyone now?"

Hinata concentrated more and more chakra. "Yes! I see someone! They seem to be trapped under a pile of trees!"

"Sakura!" Naruto yelled, and raced ahead of the others.

"Naruto!" Shikamaru yelled after him. "Stay in line!" But it was no use. The demon fox boy was already too far ahead of him to hear it.

Shikamaru shook his head in disgust. _That boy never changes,_ he thought.

They all looked around at the clearing, and all of the debris.

"Sakura!" Naruto yelled. "SAKURA!"

"Naruto! Stop yelling!" Shikamaru ordered.

Naruto went up and grabbed Hinata's arm, but not forcefully. "Hinata, where's the person you saw?"

Hinata couldn't hide the blush that formed on her pale cheeks. "Umm…right over there…underneath the trees…"

"Come on!" Naruto said as he dragged her along with him.

"N-Naruto!" Hinata stammered.

Naruto looked back at Shikamaru, Temari, and Sai. "Well, aren't you going to help with Sakura?"

They all took a step forward and started to help clear away the debris.

"Hold on, Sakura! We're coming!" Naruto yelled encouragingly.

Naruto looked back when Hinata stopped, seeing the frown on her face. "What's wrong, Hinata?"

"N-Naruto…"

"What?"

"It-it's not Sakura."

"What isn't?"

"The person under the debris."

Naruto frowned. "Then who is it?"

As if on cue they heard a groan, and Shikamaru and Sai lifted a log and they got a clear view of just exactly who it was.

"Sasuke!" Naruto exclaimed.

Said boy shifted and blinked his black eyes. Naruto hovered over his face, inches from him.

Sasuke frowned. "Sakura?" He couldn't see with the blinding sun.

Naruto gripped the front of Sasuke's shirt and jerked him off of the ground, shaking him. "What did you do to Sakura?" he demanded.

Sasuke blinked a few more times.

"Naruto?"

"Answer me!" Naruto growled.

Sasuke looked at him, and then at the five other shinobi present. He mentally cursed. He really didn't feel like battling them.

He sighed, and jerked away from Naruto. "Where's Sakura?" he demanded of Naruto.

"I just asked you that!"

"Well, I don't know! She was just here with me and…oh no…" Sasuke got quiet.

He looked at where he had last seen Sakura at. She was gone. Nor was there any trace of Deidara.

Sasuke swore, then punched the tree with enough force to knock it down.

Shikamaru stepped forward. "Sasuke Uchiha, the Hokage sent us on a mission to bring back Sakura. We did not expect to find you, but since we have your options are limited. We are obliged to bring you in as an S-class criminal. If you cooperate I'm sure we could negotiate on your sentence."

Sasuke glared at Shikamaru. "You think I give a rat's ass about you guys?"

Hinata flinched at his vulgar language, but the other just looked on.

"Why I oughtta-" Naruto began, but Shikamaru stopped him.

"Easy, Naruto. We want to avoid fighting if at all possible. Now, Uchiha, like I said. You have two options. You can-"

"Like I already said, I don't care. I'm not here to jeopardize your little mission. Now, if _you _want to avoid bloodshed, I suggest you leave me in peace."

Sasuke turned to go, but found he couldn't move. He looked down, and saw his shadow connected with Shikamaru's.

Sasuke sighed. "But if it's a fight you want…"

"We're not looking for a fight, Uchiha. We're here for Sakura."

Sasuke didn't say anything, but Shikamaru understood his silence. "Well, at least it looks like we're on the same side here."

"Hn."

Naruto couldn't take it any longer and punched Sasuke hard enough to make him bleed. "Why did you hurt Sakura? And why did you take her? After all that she's done for you-"

Sasuke glared. "Shut-up, Naruto. You're so annoying."

Naruto just glared back.

Shikamaru sighed. This wasn't getting anywhere. _How troublesome._

"Uchiha, it looks like we're both after the same thing here. Why don't we join forces for the time being? We both have the same goal, so why don't we work together to achieve it?" Shikamaru didn't need his genius to figure out that an Uchiha was a better ally than an enemy.

"Hn. I don't you pathetic excuses for humans on my side."

Shikamaru ignored that statement, and continued. "So Uchiha, who took Sakura this time?"

Sasuke's lips tightened.

Shikamaru sighed. _Man, what a drag!_

Temari stepped forward and drew her fan. "Maybe we can force it out of him!" she said threateningly. Sasuke didn't flinch, but Shikamaru did.

"Calm down, woman! We don't want any unnecessary violence!"

Sai said nothing, but stood there, looking bored.

Naruto stepped forwards. "Sasuke…if you have any shred of decency left in you you'll tell us! If you care about Sakura you won't abandon her!"

Sasuke wanted to yell at Naruto that he would never abandon Sakura, but of course he didn't. Rather, Sasuke pressed his lips even tighter together, so that they were almost white.

When the silence stretched longer and longer, Sasuke couldn't take it any more. "Look, it was Deidara, all right? He attacked us last night, and said something about wanting Sakura. Then he attacked us and apparently just took her. That's all I know about it."

Shikamaru nodded, and released the Shadow Possession jutsu.

Hinata searched around using her Byakugan. She spotted something on the ground. "I found something!"

Naruto rushed over, and the rest of them walked quickly. "What is it, Hinata?" Naruto asked.

Hinata held up the object. It was Sakura's forehead protector.

"What are you going to do, Shikamaru?" asked Temari.

Shikamaru looked at the setting sun. "We'll pick up her trail tomorrow and continue our mission. We'll bring back our fellow shinobi, _all _of them," he looked at Sasuke when he said this, but the youngest Uchiha was ignoring them all, staring off into the sun.

* * *

Sasuke glared at anything he saw. He couldn't believe that that stupid Shikamaru had made him make a deal. After they had set up camp, he had approached Sasuke, and offered him a full pardon for his crimes in exchange for his help in defeating Orochimaru and Akatsuki. Sasuke's ears had pricked up at the mention of Akatsuki, and his thoughts drifted to those of his older brother. That was the reason that Sasuke gave as to why he would even consider joining with them.

But only Sasuke knew why. He had thought that he had broken the bonds between Sakura and himself, but when he saw her again and almost killed her, the protective side of him took over. The urge to take the hurt away from her was becoming too strong. Sasuke knew that he would go and rescue Sakura without Itachi being there. He was just an added bonus.

_Maybe…_he thought. _Maybe I can defeat him now. I've gotten a lot stronger…and if I kill Itachi now, before Orochimaru can take over my body…then I can go home. _Sasuke leaned against a tree. He didn't understand when Sakura had gotten to him. When he had first seen her again, he thought of her as merely a pawn. Soon his icy interior melted to form a calm lake , but now his emotions were a raging dam. He didn't know what he felt for the pink-haired kunoichi, but he knew that he'd go to the ends of the earth to save her if need be.

Sasuke glanced at everyone, who was settled by the campfire. They were talking quietly among themselves. He noticed how close Shikamaru and the sand kunoichi were sitting, and how at ease they were with each other. Sasuke narrowed his eyes. He didn't consider himself a jealous person, but right now he'd give anything to be like that with Sakura. But that wasn't the path that life had chosen for him.

He was an avenger. And he must _never_ forget that. No matter how he wished things were different, and that he could return to his old life, Sasuke knew that it could never be. There could be no future between him and Sakura. And no matter how much he wanted it to be true, there destinies just were not intertwined with each others'.

That didn't mean that he couldn't wish they were. If by some miracle Sasuke did defeat Itachi before Orochimaru got a hold of him, and if by some miracle Sasuke was accepted back into Konoha, and if by some miracle Sakura still cared for him, than maybe things would be different. Sasuke knew that there were just too many if's and maybe's.

His thoughts turned towards Sakura and her current predicament. What reason could the Akatsuki have for kidnapping Sakura? Sasuke would never admit it, but he was worried about her. Anything could happen to her in their hands. If Itachi had been capable of murdering his entire clan, he would do anything to Sakura. Including showing off his perfect form of Sharingan. Sasuke shuddered when he remembered what the Mangekyou Sharingan was capable of.

Sasuke gritted his teeth and clenched his hands. He would rescue Sakura before they could do anything to her.

* * *

For once Naruto was quiet. He had sat down next to Hinata (causing her to blush profusely) and was poking the fire with a stick, looking thoughtful.

"Naruto, you're awful quiet," Shikamaru observed.

Naruto didn't look up. "I'm worried for Sakura."

Hinata nodded. "We all are, Naruto."

Shikamaru sighed. "Naruto…you should get some rest. Everyone should, in fact. I'll take the first watch."

"All right, Shikamaru," he replied, and went to his tent.

"Good night, Naruto," Hinata whispered. She blushed at her bravery.

Naruto put a hand on her shoulder. "Good night, Hinata."

Hinata gulped and nearly fainted at Naruto's touch. But she managed to make it back to her tent. She was surprised that no one had commented on her racing heart, for she was sure that everyone could have heard it. Hinata was ashamed of herself. But she couldn't help but be a little bit envious of Sakura. Naruto cared for her so much, and had always loved her. Hinata had wished so much that he would feel the same way about her that she felt about him. Those bad feelings didn't in any detract from the way she felt about Sakura. She was a good friend, and Hinata was genuinely concerned for her friend's wellbeing. Plus, Naruto would be crushed if anything were to happen to Sakura. Hinata dreamt of Naruto, and how he finally realized that they were meant to be together.

Before going to bed, Naruto thought about Sakura. He was extremely worried about her, especially being in the hands of Akatsuki. At least when she was taken by Orochimaru, Naruto had comforted himself in the fact that Sasuke wouldn't let anything bad happen to her. At least, that's what Naruto had to tell himself to stop from going crazy with worry. But now, there was no one to look out for her. He'd gotten over his childish crush on her, after realizing that she was still in love with Sasuke and would always be. He cared deeply for her, and loved her like a best friend. There would be other girls out there for him, Sakura had told him once. He thought that she had been hinting at something, but didn't think too much of it at the time. Now he wished that he would have. He fell into a dreamless, deep, much-needed slumber.

* * *

**Aye…here's another update! It might be awhile before another update…Friday's my birthday and I'll be in town…and then this weekend I have a JSA convention to go to…so I'm sorry if it takes awhile. But please review! I always look forward to those, and it helps me update! Thank you to all of those that review! Oh, and I was looking back at the rest of the chapters for this story, and I realize that I made a few mistakes, so I profoundly apologize for those!**

**belle2990**


	7. Prisoner

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

**Okay, first of all people, I would like to apologize for a little misunderstanding. I know that Deidara's character is OOC because he ends his sentences with "Yeah" or "Hmmm" but that just bothered the crap out of me and it was annoying. It didn't really make sense with the dialogue and everything, so I didn't make him say them. I apologize if it made some people or anything; I hate reading it so I thought a lot of other people wouldn't like it also…so yah. I totally forgot to mention it last chapter so please accept my humblest apology.**

**Thanks to all you reviewers! And shame to all of those who read and can't spare thirty seconds out of their busy lives to click a button and type a few words and then click another button. Anyways…on with the story.**

**Wait, I lied. Before I do, I'd just like to thank everyone in general because so far everyone was liked it, albeit a few people who were critics (don't worry I'm not mad or anything) so I'm so glad that you guys responded positively to my story.**

**Okay, one more thing. I've decided to end this story pretty soon, and I'll tell you why. I thought of another idea for a story, and I want to start on that story ASAP and I couldn't write two stories at once (well, I could, but that would mean a severe lack of updating) so I decided to end this story (most likely a cliffy) and then continue on the plot and everything in another story. So I won't technically be ending the story, just the title I guess.**

* * *

**Chapter Seven: Prisoner**

"Drain her chakra."

That was the first thing that entered Sakura's barely-conscious mind. She groaned and blinked. She slowly raised her head, which felt like it weighed a ton, and blinked. Her vision was blurry, but she made out the forms of two people. They both had black robes on it with spots of red.

"Where-where am I?" Sakura ground out, her voice raw and barely audible.

She looked at one to the other. She wasn't sure, considering her vision was still blurry, but one of them looked blue.

The non-blue one spoke. She recognized it as the first one that had spoken. "Your own personal hell."

"Wh-what?" Sakura frowned. She tried to move, but found that she couldn't because her hands were chained above her head. She couldn't feel them, as all of the blood had long since left them.

Neither one replied, but the blue one brought an enormous object towards her, and she felt herself growing weaker and weaker. After a few seconds, Sakura's mind was blank and she sank into a black oblivion.

* * *

"Damnit!" Sasuke swore. They'd been traveling for hours and still hadn't found anything. They had stopped for a break, and because they hadn't found any leads as to Sakura's whereabouts. 

Sasuke looked over at Hinata and glared.

"Can't you use Byakugan and find her?"

Hinata flinched. "I-I'm trying."

Naruto stepped between them. "Leave her alone Sasuke! She's doing all she can! This wouldn't have happened if you would've protected her!"

Sasuke activated his Sharingan. He didn't say it out loud, but way down deep, Sasuke knew it was true. He _did_ blame himself. Just another incident in which Sasuke failed to protect those he cared about because he was too weak. Didn't they understand that that was why he needed power? And in order to gain it, he needed to obtain it from Orochimaru. He would kill the snake-Sannin otherwise.

Naruto and Sasuke stared each other down, both refusing to look away. Shikamaru stepped between them.

"Calm down. Our first priority is to find Sakura, not start fighting amongst ourselves, remember?"

Naruto frowned, and Sasuke glared. He leaned against a tree, folding his arms across his chest.

Naruto scratched the back of his head and bowed his head in shame. "You're right, Shikamaru. I'm sorry."

Shikamaru nodded. Temari approached him. "Shikamaru…maybe we should split up and search. We could cover more ground that way."

He shook his head. "No. Not with Akatsuki around. That would be the dumbest thing you could do."

"Aw Shikamaru! We can take them! Believe it!" Naruto punched the air.

Shikamaru sighed. "Naruto, for they safety of everyone," he raised an eyebrow and gave a nod in Hinata's direction, "We will remain together."

Naruto would've argued further, but the thought about Hinata's safety stopped him.

"I guess you're right," Naruto grumbled.

Sasuke snorted. Naruto chose to not say anything.

Sasuke sighed, and then started walking.

"Where do you think you're going?" Naruto growled.

"To find Itachi."

"How can you possibly be thinking about him when Sakura's been kidnapped? You are a heartless bastard, Sasuke!" Naruto clenched his fists and glared at Sasuke's back.

Sasuke didn't even turn around as he replied, "I have hunch that if we find Itachi we find Sakura."

Naruto relaxed, but was still angry. He knew that it was more than that. Sasuke wanted revenge at all costs.

Naruto ran to catch up to him. The others knew to stay behind a few feet.

"Sasuke," Naruto said, walking beside him.

Sasuke just ignored him, staring straight ahead.

Naruto stepped in front of Sasuke. Instead of going around Naruto, like Sasuke normally would've done, he too stopped.

Temari, Shikamaru, Hinata, and Sai, who was quiet, as usual, all stopped too.

"What do you want, Naruto?" Sasuke asked in a cold voice.

Naruto looked at him with his crystal clear blue eyes and said, with a determined look on his face, "Promise me something."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow, but didn't respond.

"Hey, Sasuke," Naruto continued, "To save Sakura no matter what."

Sasuke's mind went back in the past at those words. It was during the Chuunin Exams, and they were fighting a half-transformed Gaara. Sakura was pinned to a tree by Gaara's sand, and it was slowly crushing her. She was there because she had stood in front of Sasuke, protecting him. Sasuke knew that he couldn't beat Gaara in his current state, so he told Naruto something. _"Hey, Naruto. You better save Sakura no matter what."_ Naruto had kept his promise that day. And now Naruto was looking for the same one he had given a long time ago.

"Sasuke, promise me that you will." Sasuke was shaken out of his memories by Naruto's voice again.

Sasuke said nothing.

"Answer me, Sasuke!" Naruto demanded. He made it very clear that he wasn't moving until he got an answer.

"Naruto," Sasuke said quietly. "I'm not like you. I will not bound myself to an oath in which I have no power of keeping or destroying."

Naruto clenched his fists. "Does Sakura really mean so little to you? After all that she's done for you?! She almost died trying to save you, on more than one occasion!" Naruto was shouting.

Those words brought back a memory from long ago for Naruto. He remembered his first real mission as a Chuunin. It was on the bridge in the Village of Waves, and Haku had died saving Zabuza. Zabuza acted like he didn't even care, but eventually he came to his senses and realized what he had lost in Haku, the only person who cared about him.

Naruto wondered briefly if that's what would happen to Sasuke. If someone important to Sasuke died, how would he react? Would he be like Zabuza, and not realize how much the person had meant to him until it was too late? Naruto shook himself from his morbid thoughts and still stood resolutely, barring Sasuke's way.

"Naruto, move out of my way."

"No, Sasuke. Not until you promise me that you won't let Sakura die."

"Naruto, I already told you-"

"And you also told me once, long ago, that you never wanted to see an important friend die in front of you again! _You _told _me_ to rescue Sakura no matter what! And I did!"

"Naruto, you're annoying. I've already told you before that I have broken the bonds between me and her. Between you and me, as well. You would be wise to step out of my way now before I have to force you to."

"Sasuke…if you let you her die…I will kill you." Naruto said. He wasn't grinning like an idiot, and there was not sparkle of humor in his eyes. Naruto's eyes were cold for once, much like Sasuke's.

"Naruto…if you get in my way again…I will kill you." Sasuke then proceeded to go around Naruto, and continued on his way.

Naruto stood there until Shikamaru approached him. "Naruto…let's get going."

Naruto was shaken out of his stupor. He nodded. "Hai."

Hinata gulped. She didn't want to admit it, but Sasuke intimidated her. And she'd never seen Naruto look that cold before.

Temari was whispering to Shikamaru. "We can't let him jeopardize the mission, Shikamaru," she said, referring to Sasuke.

"I know. He won't."

"How do you know?"

"Think of your brother. He was a cold-blooded killer during the Chuunin Exams, correct?"

"Yes."

"Look at him now, after Naruto had gotten to him."

"He's changed a lot," Temari admitted.

Shikamaru glanced at Naruto, who was whistling. "There's something special about that Naruto. He gets to people. Maybe he can get through to Sasuke, too."

Temari nodded. "It makes sense. I guess."

Shikamaru grinned. "Well it better. It took me all of two seconds to think it up!"

Temari rolled her eyes. "Arrogant men."

Shikamaru grinned. "Troublesome women."

Temari couldn't help but smile. It had been awhile since she'd last seen Shikamaru. She decided to change the subject to a happier tone.

* * *

Sakura groaned. She slowly lifted her head and opened her eyes. They were blurry at first, but after a few moments she could see. It was dark, and smelled musty. She could hear the steady _drip! drip! _of a nearby leak. The walls were cold and made of stone, and the floor was dirt. 

Sakura rattled the chains that bound her arms above her head. She bit back a groan when she did that. Her arms felt like someone was sticking thousands of needles in them mercilessly.

Sakura found that all of her chakra was gone, except the minimal amount in order to survive. She mustered up the strength to swear vehemently.

Then an iron door swung heavily open, and the blue man that Sakura remembered seeing walked in.

He had a steaming bowl of soup in his hand, and the aroma wafted to her nostrils. Her mouth watered in response, and her stomach growled, conveying its hunger to her.

Sakura gritted her teeth and remained silent.

"Stop being stubborn, girl. I know you're hungry."

Sakura refused to say anything, but her stomach growled again.

"I'll make this as simple as possible. If you want to eat, you're going to answer a few questions for me."

Sakura snorted, breaking her silence. "How do I know that you'll give me the food after I answer them?"

"Simple. I'll give it to you now."

He brought the bowl closer to her nose, and Sakura had never felt such hunger in her stomach. It burned to the point of her eyes tearing up.

Stubborn as a mule, Sakura shook her head.

"I don't trust you. It's probably poisoned."

The blue man chuckled. "I have no reason to kill you…yet."

Sakura swallowed nervously. Maybe she shouldn't push her luck. She knew that she could defend herself, but without her chakra her life was completely in these mad men's hands.

"Fine. I'll agree to it."

"Good. It would go much easier on you." He set the bowl down and unlocked her chains. Her arms fell limply to her sides, and it took several seconds before she was even able to feel them again.

While the blue man was unlocking the chains he continued. "I suggested torture as the best and easiest route, but my partner suggested that that would not be wise, as a person will admit to anything when being tortured." He grinned, showing a row of spaced, sharp teeth. All in all the man closely resembled a shark to Sakura.

Then something dawned in Sakura's foggy mind.

"You're Kisame, aren't you?"

The man looked surprised. "So my reputation proceeds me, does it? I'm flattered."

Sakura glared. "Don't be. I took it upon myself to learn about Akatsuki. And the man who kidnapped me was Deidara. That means that the other man I saw with you is your partner."

"What if he is?"

Sakura's eyes widened. "Itachi Uchiha."

He grinned evilly. "Yep."

Sakura shuddered.

She knew what Akatsuki was capable of. After a few moments Kisame asked his first question. Sakura still couldn't move her hands.

"Where is Orochimaru's lair?"

The question took Sakura off guard.

"I-I don't know."

Kisame bared his teeth.

"Well, I mean I know. I just couldn't tell you the exact location. I know it's due southeast. And that's about all I can tell you."

Whether he believed her or not, Kisame continued his questions.

"What sort of experiments is he doing there?"

"I don't know. I never really saw anything."

"Does Sasuke Uchiha still hold a bond with you?"

This question really threw Sakura off. "How is this relevant?"

"Just answer it."

Sakura looked down, and quietly whispered, "No."

"I see. If he has no attachment to you, then does that mean that you think he will not come and rescue you?"

Sakura thought a moment. "No, he'll come. If only to kill Itachi. No matter what Sasuke says he still has a sense of honor about him. He would come for me, I think." _I hope,_ she silently added.

Kisame then turned around and left. Sakura could see the broad sword at his back. She shuddered at what it had done to her. She had no chakra left, and her arms hung limply at her sides.

_Wait a minute! _Sakura thought. _He left me unchained. That means that I can escape! _Sakura grinned, her hunger forgotten as she started formulating all sorts of plans in her clever mind.

When she was on her fifth one, the door was opened again, only this time more slowly.

In walked Itachi Uchiha. All thoughts were forgotten as Sakura stared at the tall figure.

* * *

"I think I see something up ahead!" said Hinata as they raced through the trees. She was first in line, then Naruto, Shikamaru, Sai, Temari, and Sasuke bringing up the rear. 

They all halted on a branch.

Hinata pointed. "There. It's a…cave of some sorts. The trees thin out about three hundred yards from here."

Shikamaru nodded. "Let's go."

_Sakura, _thought Naruto. _We're coming._

Sasuke's thoughts were also on Sakura. _Sakura…hold on._

* * *

Sakura tried to swallow but her throat had went dry. This man commanded fear out of the people he saw. 

Sakura didn't want to admit it, but he terrified her.

It didn't help that he had the face of the boy she loved.

Sakura finally found her voice. She tried to squeak when she talked.

"What do you want with me?" she whispered.

"My brother."

"W-what? What do you want with Sasuke?" She found the courage to raise her voice to him after the conversation steered towards Sasuke.

Sakura remembered that she hated this man more than anyone. It was because of him that his entire clan was murdered, scarring Sasuke for life. It was because of him that Sasuke was cold and distant. It was because of him that Sasuke went in search of power and betrayed her and Konoha. Sakura glared at him.

"He is Orochimaru's next vessel. If we kill him, then Orochimaru will not be able to regain his strength and would resort to a weaker vessel. Then we kill him. Simple."

"You'd kill your own brother?" _Well duh! _Sakura thought right after she said that. _He only killed of his entire clan save Sasuke. I doubt there is anything he wouldn't do._

Itachi didn't smile or anything. His voice and face remained cool, and emotionless. "I have no qualms about killing him. He's been a thorn in my side for years."

"I won't let you kill him." Sakura said, determination radiating from her jade eyes.

"Oh? You think you could stop me?"

"Yes."

"How dare you even compare your pathetic little self to me. You're not even worthy of my spit."

"Why don't we put that theory to a test then?"

This time he grinned. "That won't be necessary. I'll show you what true power is right here, right now."

Sakura didn't have time to think about he meant before his eyes turned red. The cell disappeared, and Sakura found herself tied to a cross in a dark red world.

Sakura looked around. She had never known such fear as she felt right then. "Mangekyou Sharingan," she whispered.

"Right you are, girl," said Itachi, appearing in front of her.

"W-what are you going to do?" Sakura whispered, unwanted tears forming in her eyes. She knew that she would appear to be in here for three days, but it would really only be a few minutes in the real world.

Itachi gave the barest of smiles. "Whatever I want."

Sakura gasped in horror as Itachi approached her. But it wasn't Itachi anymore. It was Sasuke.

"No," she told herself. "It's not real."

Itachi, as Sasuke, smirked. "Oh, but it is Sakura. You know I never loved you. I've always hated you. You were always worthless to me."

Tears trickled down her face. Sasuke's eyes were blood red, the same eyes that she had just seen on Itachi.

He smirked. "Naruto was easy to kill. He was always worthless, too."

"Stop!"

"Why, Sakura? This is me. I've always been this way. You've just been too stupid to notice. I've never liked you. Nor will I ever."

He took out his Kusanagi and licked the blade. "This is going to be a long three days, Sakura."

Sakura closed her eyes and tried to slow down her racing heart. _It's not Sasuke, it's not Sasuke, it's not Sasuke, _she kept repeating to herself over and over.

When she opened her eyes, it was still Sasuke, except that his eyes were black.

"Sakura…" he whispered as he came closer. Sakura frowned. It looked like he was going to…kiss her.

As he got closer, her eyes drifted closed of their own accord. But then she felt a white hot fiery pain in her stomach. She opened her eyes and saw Kusanagi sticking out of her body.

Her mind told her it wasn't real but the pain in her body told her it wasn't. Sasuke took the handle and ripped it out of her, spraying her blood everywhere.

Sakura screamed.

Sasuke grinned evilly. "Isn't this fun?"

Sakura struggled against the bonds that held her to the cross valiantly, but to avail. She was tied securely.

Over the course of the three days in the Mangekyou Sharingan, Itachi (posing as Sasuke) repeatedly stabbed her over and over, relentlessly taunting her with memories of Sasuke.

* * *

**Okay you guys…I am so sorry about my lack of updating. I got back really late on Sunday night and then I've had Chemistry labs left and right. You guys have the right to tar and feather me (please have mercy!) Anyways….I will get on myself about another update before I leave for Washington on Friday…so I will seriously try…leave me some reviews! **


	8. Inner Strength

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto**

**Thanks for all of the reviews you guys!**

* * *

**Chapter Eight: Inner Strength**

"We're here," stated Hinata.

"Where is it?" Naruto asked, squinting.

Hinata pointed to the ground.

"I don't see it…" Naruto said lamely.

Shikamaru sighed. "It's underground, Naruto."

Realization dawned on Naruto. "Ohhh…so how do we get down there?"

"Is there an opening, Hinata?" asked Temari.

Hinata nodded. "Hai. It's very discrete; it's hidden among the bushes right there."

Shikamaru nodded. "Let's go."

"Don't worry, Sakura, we're coming!" Naruto yelled.

"Shut-up, Naruto!" said Shikamaru.

Naruto looked sheepish. "Sorry…"

Shikamaru sighed. "Okay, this is what we're going to do…"

* * *

"Itachi."

Said man was on his hands and knees, panting. His eyes felt like they were on fire, and his body felt weak. Mangekyou Sharingan always did this to him.

"What, Kisame?"

"Why do you keep using that if it makes you so damn weak?" Kisame wrapped Itachi's arm around his neck and helped him up.

"It usually doesn't."

"Then what happened?"

Itachi stole a glance at the pink-haired kunoichi on the floor. Her eyes were wide with terror, and every few moments she would whimper. Her whole body was shaking uncontrollably. Blood was spurting from a wound in her stomach.

"She defeated my Mangekyou Sharingan."

"What?! How?" asked an incredulous Kisame.

"I don't know. I've never seen it before. Not even the copy-nin Kakashi could beat it. And here this little girl threw me out of her mind." Itachi motioned for them to leave. Before the iron door swung shut, Itachi said, "It was like there were two of her in her own mind. The first time I did it to her, everything was fine. But then she made me angry, and she still wouldn't give me the answer I was seeking. So I showed her my Mangekyou Sharingan again. But it only lasted two days. By the third day she was in it, another one of her appeared. It warned me to get out of her mind, and when I didn't she started glowing green, and after a few moments a wave of chakra hit me, and the next thing I knew I woke up next to her, here."

Kisame shook his head. "Unbelievable."

"No, impossible. I don't know how she did it, but she'll pay."

Kisame looked at the bleeding kunoichi and thought, _It looks like she already did._

"I almost forgot, Itachi. The plan's changed. A group of Konoha shinobi are here."

Itachi narrowed his eyes. "So?"

"The leader ordered us to evacuate. He doesn't want us to fight this time."

"What?"

"I know. I even went so far as to question his order, especially since the Kyuubi holder is among them, but he went into one of his 'moods' and, well….you know how he gets."

"What is he thinking?" Itachi asked out loud.

"I don't know, but we have to leave now. They'll be here in less than five minutes."

Itachi nodded, knowing he was in no condition to fight anyways.

* * *

"Do you see anyone, Hinata?"

"Only one person. They're in a small room. It doesn't look like their moving, though." Hinata gasped.

"What is it, Hinata?" Naruto asked worriedly.

"It-it's Sakura!"

Naruto was about to take off, but was stopped by Sasuke's cold, hard voice.

"Where is she?"

Hinata gulped as she told him.

Before anyone could say anything else, Sasuke had disappeared.

Shikamaru turned to Temari. "Temari, since both of our jutsus are better used outside, we'll stand watch out here." Temari nodded. Shikamaru turned to Naruto, Sai, and Hinata. "You three be on your guard. Hinata says she doesn't see anyone, and I don't sense anyone either, but these are Akatsuki members here, so expect anything."

"Hai!"

The two boys followed Hinata, using her Byakugan to find Sakura.

* * *

Sasuke ran so fast that it looked as if he had disappeared. When he heard that Sakura wasn't moving, his heart stopped beating for a few moments, and then sped up quickly, making him pant.

Despite the wind and rushed past him in the cool corridors as he ran, sweat dribbled down his face. He didn't have time to make up excuses about why he was so worried about Sakura. He was surprised to find that he didn't _want_ to make up excuses. He admitted that he genuinely cared about her, but only as a friend. Or at least, that's all that he would admit at this moment.

After a few seconds he found himself in front of an iron door, bolted shut. He could sense a low chakra behind this door, and it was ebbing slowly away. He felt panic rise inside of him, but he kept a calm exterior.

He unbolted the door, and it opened slowly, with an eerie squeak. It was extremely dark inside, and not that big at all. The smell of blood invaded his senses, and he had to swallow quickly to avoid heaving.

He heard a whimper, and his obsidian eyes were drawn to a corner. He saw a flash of pink and not even a second later he was by her side. He saw where the blood was coming from; there were several wounds on her stomach. It looked like someone had repeatedly stabbed her.

At the sight of her bloody body, his Sharingan had immediately activated. Sasuke had to calm himself down so he wouldn't scare her.

He saw that she was awake, or better yet conscious, but she didn't seem aware of anything. Her skin was pale and icy cold to the touch.

"Sakura," he whispered. He could barely sense her chakra anymore. He quickly ripped off a piece of his robe and put it on her wounds and applied pressure in an attempt to stop the bleeding.

She whimpered when he pressed on her wounds. Sasuke gritted his teeth.

He heard the others' footsteps in the corridor and yelled at them to hurry up. A mere second later, Naruto's blond head poked through the door.

"Sakura!" Naruto yelled, and ran over to her. He knelt beside Sasuke. "What happened?" he asked in a quiet voice.

"I don't know. I found her like this."

The others appeared in the room. Hinata gasped and covered her mouth. "Sakura!"

Sai whispered, "No…"

Tears were shining in Naruto's eyes. "Will she be okay?"

"Of course she will idiot! How can you even ask that?"

"You're right, Sasuke. She'll make it."

Hinata used her Byakugan to check for any more injuries. "Sakura had many bruises that are affecting her chakra flow. The main source of her blood loss are the wounds in her stomach."

"Damnit…she's got to snap out of it and heal herself!" Sasuke said, still applying pressure to her wound.

"But she is awake!" Naruto argued, looking at Sakura's wide open eyes.

"Look at her, idiot! Her mind might be conscious, but she's not 'here'!"

"Oh…" Naruto said. "What can we do to help her if we don't know what's wrong with her?"

Sasuke sat back and whispered, "I know what happened."

They all waited for him to continue. "Itachi…"

Sasuke looked at Sai. "Go back and inform Shikamaru of this. Tell him and the Sand kunoichi to go back to Konoha and tell Tsunade what happened. Tell her to come as soon as possible."

Sakura whimpered, and tears formed in her eyes.

"Sakura!" Naruto yelled. "Wake up, Sakura! It's me, Naruto!"

Sakura didn't respond, but whimpered again.

"Sakura!"

"Naruto…it won't work. She's seen Mangekyou Sharingan."

Naruto felt like the wind had been knocked out of him. "Man-gek-you…Sha-rin-gan?" He said each syllable slowly, as if not being able to believe it.

"You've seen what it does to people, Naruto. Both Kakashi and myself were subjected to it, and only the healing power of Tsunade brought us back. Sakura needs Tsunade."

Naruto nodded, and gulped. Hinata came over and knelt beside Naruto. Hinata took a deep breath, and laid a hand on Naruto's back for comfort. Hinata was surprised that she couldn't feel herself blushing. She supposed that it was because Naruto needed her to be strong, so she was strong for him.

"We've got to get her out of here," Sasuke said. He gently turned her on her back, and put his arms under her back and knees. He lifted her gently, and gritted his teeth when he heard her whimper in pain, tears coursing down her cheeks to fall upon his arms.

"Sakura," he whispered, looking into her eyes. "Wake up, please."

Sakura didn't respond.

Naruto and Hinata stood up and walked beside Sasuke.

"Naruto…"

"Yes, Sasuke?"

"Take Sakura while I do something."

"Do what?" Naruto asked suspiciously.

"None of your business."

Hinata glanced between the two of them, concerned.

"You're going after Itachi, aren't you?"

Sasuke didn't say anything, but lifted Sakura in the air to hand over to Naruto. Naruto folded his arms and refused to take her.

"I'm not letting you abandon her again, Sasuke."

Sasuke glared at him, his Sharingan becoming visible.

Naruto glared back.

Both glared at each other in silence before they heard Hinata's quiet voice.

"Please…let's just get Sakura to safety. She'll die if she doesn't get help."

That snapped them both out of it.

Sasuke ground his teeth in frustration. "Fine." He walked out of the room, careful not to jar Sakura any more than necessary.

Naruto and Hinata quickly followed, both showing concern for their friend.

When they arrived outside, Sasuke gently set Sakura down. Sai was there, and upon seeing nothing new, went and kept watch for them.

Sasuke looked at his arms. They were covered in blood. _Her_ blood. Sasuke swallowed as the metallic scent wafted towards his nostrils. He began to feel nauseous, but swallowed the bile that formed in his throat and concentrated on helping Sakura.

"Hinata, go get some water. Naruto, go help her." They both nodded, knowing that this was no time for arguments.

He gently peeled back the wet shirt, being careful when it stuck to her, the blood like glue on her skin. She groaned, but Sasuke continued. He cut her shirt all the way up to her chest, so that her wounded stomach was exposed.

Sasuke was, for once, thankful that he had watched some of Kabuto's twisted experiments. During them, he had gained quite a bit of knowledge about healing. Although he had never attempted to heal before, Sasuke knew the basics without using chakra.

Looking at the red wounds on Sakura's flat stomach, which started to bleed again, scared him. Sasuke knew that she would die from blood loss within two days if he didn't stop the bleeding now.

He wiped the sweat from his brow with the back of his hand. He swore. _Where is that damn water?_

As if on cue Hinata and Naruto showed up, and Sasuke grabbed a canteen full of water. "It's clean, right?" he asked.

"Hai," Hinata said.

Sasuke poured the water gently over Sakura's wounds, cleansing them. He began to wipe away the dried up blood, and the new blood. Once he was done, he bandaged them and hoped that the blood would clot and that they would stop bleeding.

The sun was starting to set when Sasuke finished. Naruto and Sai quickly built a fire to ward off the coming chill while Hinata stood watch.

Through the long night Sasuke stayed by Sakura's side while she entered a feverish state. Her eyes still remained wide with fright, but her whimpering died down to every few minutes.

Sasuke replaced the cloth on her forehead with a new, cool one. Sasuke began to feel concern…for a friend.

He bent his face towards Sakura and activated his Sharingan. _If the Sharingan can knock people out, then maybe it could also revive them, _he thought. No, he _hoped._

He forced Sakura to look directly into his eyes. At first, nothing happened. But then her eyes went wide, and they started blinking. She screamed, and brought her hands up to push him away.

Sasuke grabbed on her arms, pinning them to the ground.

"Sakura, it's me. Sasuke." He whispered.

But Sakura still resisted. Her whole body squirmed as she tried to break free, reopening her wounds.

"Damnit, Sakura! It's Sasuke!"

"No it's not!" she said in a hoarse voice.

"Sakura…it's me." He whispered.

Sakura looked at him. "I won't fall for it again, Itachi. It's useless."

Sasuke felt like he had been punched in the gut at the name "Itachi."

He clenched his jaw. "I'm not Itachi, Sakura. He's gone. He can't hurt you again."

Sakura didn't say anything, but kept trying to fight him off.

At the sound of yelling and scuffling, Naruto came running. "Sakura! You're awake! Sasuke get off her!"

Sakura's eyes widened in disbelief. "N-Naruto?" Her head turned to see the blond grinning.

"You'd better believe it's me!"

"Sakura, I'm glad you're awake." Sai had calmly walked over, and was smiling his ever-present smile.

Hinata shyly stepped forward. "I'm glad you're awake, too, Sakura," she said quietly.

Sakura immediately stopped struggling and turned to Sasuke.

"S-Sasuke?" Sasuke let go of her and folded her arms.

"Hn."

Sakura smiled, but then frowned when she placed a hand on her stomach and then looked at her hand. It was covered in her blood.

Suddenly memories assailed her, and she cried out from the pain as well as the recollection of what happened.

After a few moments, she calmed herself down.

She gritted her teeth against the pain, and looked at the three others. "I can't heal myself. My chakra's been depleted, so I need you guys to help me."

"Tell us what to do," Naruto said. The others nodded.

Sakura turned to Sasuke. "I need you to stop the bleeding." At first, Sasuke didn't know what she meant, but then realization dawned. He hated to even think about doing it, but he knew that it was the only option left. Tsunade wouldn't arrive in time to heal her, and none of them knew how.

"Sai, Naruto!"

"Yes?"

"I need you to hold her down."

"What for?" asked Naruto.

"I need to cauterize the wounds so they'll stop bleeding." Sasuke set about removing the blood-soaked bandages and threw them on the fire.

Naruto gulped, but remained calm. He turned to Hinata. "Hinata…plug your ears and don't look."

Hinata didn't question him, and did as she was told, her back to them as she went off to stand watch.

Sai placed a stick in Sakura's mouth so she had something to bite down on.

Sasuke swallowed, but remained calm. He concentrated his chakra into his right palm, and soon it began to glow a reddish-orange. It soon began to take on the shape and look of fire. After several moments he gritted his teeth and touched the biggest wound. Sakura's eyes went wide and she screamed a blood-curdling scream, which rang through the forest, scaring off any animals within a hundred yards.

Sasuke was sweating profusely. Naruto and Sai each had a hold of one her hands, as she squeezed them. Sasuke fervently wished that she would pass out, but Sakura refused to do so. In her mind, it would be the same as giving up, giving in to the pain. And she swore that she wouldn't do so. She would show everyone how tough she had become by enduring it.

When Sasuke moved on to the next wound, Sakura didn't scream again. She bit down as hard as she could on the stick, and gripped Naruto and Sai's hands like a vise.

Finally the grueling task was done. Sakura spit out the stick, panting. Her arms feel weakly to her sides, and sweat ran down her face. But still she didn't give in.

Naruto smiled. "I'm proud of you Sakura."

Sai nodded in agreement. "You were strong."

Sakura smiled weakly in return. "Th-thank you."

Sakura's shimmering jade eyes turned to Sasuke, as if expecting a compliment from him too. Sasuke just narrowed his eyes.

"Get some rest." Sakura looked disappointed, but the look passed.

"Hai, Sasuke. And thank you for helping me," she returned.

He gave the barest of nods.

Naruto growled at Sasuke. "Can't you show her the least bit of respect after all that she's been through?"

Sasuke ignored him and sat against a tree, his eyes tilted towards the sky.

"You're a heartless bastard, Sasuke."

Still Sasuke ignored him. Naruto's eyes glittered dangerously.

"I want you gone by morning. I don't want to _ever_ see you with Sakura again. You're nothing but a toxic poison to her. It's because of _you_ that she's lying over there in pain, and you can't even give her a slight recognition." Naruto knew that he would later regret his harsh words, but at the moment he was too mad to care. "Leave right now. When we meet next Sasuke, _I will win._"

Naruto turned around, but before he left Sasuke spoke in a quiet tone. "I know."

Naruto turned to face him. "Know what?"

"That Sakura was hurt because of me. I won't ever come near her again, and I'll make her hate me if that's what it takes to keep her safe from me."

Naruto's face softened. "I'm sorry, Sasuke. I spoke rashly and out of anger. Sakura wouldn't want you to be alone and despised. She could never hate you, Sasuke. You should know that by now." Naruto's voice quieted as she said the last few sentences.

Sasuke lowered his head, as if he was being chastised. "Naruto…" Sasuke looked up. "I've discovered something."

"What is it?"

"I can't break the bonds that were formed years ago, no matter how hard I try."

Naruto didn't know what to say, so he let Sasuke continue. "I thought that if I broke the bonds that I could become strong, but I was wrong. While the bonds were my weakness, they were also my strength."

"So what are you going to do, Sasuke?" asked Naruto quietly.

Sasuke waited a few moments to answer. "I'm going to defeat Orochimaru, and Akatsuki."

"Does this mean that you'll come back to Konoha?" Naruto asked hopefully.

"No, idiot. I made a vow that I would not return home until I had avenged my clan by killing Itachi. I won't break that vow now, or ever. Even if I have to die trying." Sasuke looked at the stars. "It's my curse, my path to follow."

Naruto looked angry again. "So you're going to abandon us again?"

"I didn't say that."

"So what are you saying?"

Sasuke took a deep breath, and frowned, as if it was hard for him to speak the words. "I'm saying that you and Sakura are welcome to join me on my quest. Become team 7 once again."

Naruto beamed. "You mean it, Sasuke?"

Sasuke glared. "Just shut-up already, will you?" Sasuke had had quite enough heart-to-heart for the day, and had to maintain his cool disposition, after all.

Sasuke's words didn't phase Naruto. He just kept grinning like an idiot until an idea occurred to him. "Oh, I'd better tell Sakura!"

Sasuke rolled his eyes at Naruto, but a smirk graced the corners of his lips. Sasuke's thoughts turned to Sakura, and how much stronger she'd gotten. He soon felt himself begin to drift off to sleep, where his dreams were plagued by a certain pink-haired kunoichi.

………………………………...

Naruto had ran over to Sakura to tell her the news, but he found her already asleep. He didn't have the heart to wake her up, so he took a blanket from his pack and laid it over Sakura.

Then he went and sat down next to Hinata.

A blush crept into her cheeks at Naruto's nearness. "I-I'm glad that Sakura's okay now," she said, in an attempt to break the silence.

Naruto nodded. "Me too."

"You care about her a lot, don't you?" Naruto asked quietly.

"Of course I do."

Hinata swallowed her pride, and found courage to ask, "Do you love her?"

Naruto looked at Hinata for a moment before tearing his gaze away and staring into the fire. "I used to think I loved her, but now I see it as a childhood crush. I do love her, but not in the way that I love…someone else."

"O-oh," Hinata said. Her eyes were downcast as she contemplated who the other person might be.

They sat in silence for a few moments before Naruto stood up.

He didn't seem like his normal cheery self and it bothered Hinata. "Is-is something bothering you, Naruto?"

Naruto smiled and placed a hand on her shoulder, causing Hinata to blush even more and gulp loudly.

"It's nothing. Sorry if I worried you, Hinata. Hey, will you do me a favor and watch over Sakura while I get some rest?"

"S-sure. G-good night, Naruto."

Naruto nodded and headed off towards the tent. Hinata sat quietly for a few moments, trying to decide who Naruto loved, when a voice disturbed her thoughts.

"Hinata?"

It was Sakura.

Hinata quietly made her way over to Sakura. "Yes?"

"You love Naruto, don't you?" Sakura smiled at Hinata's blush.

Hinata decided it was time to finally admit it to someone. Maybe if she talked about it, the feelings wouldn't hurt so much.

"Yes."

Sakura smiled even deeper. "I think he loves you too," she whispered.

Hinata's violet eyes got round as saucers before quickly shaking her head. "No he doesn't."

"What makes you think that?" Sakura asked, sitting up and wincing.

"You should rest. Don't strain yourself," Hinata said, partly out of concern and partly to change the subject.

"Don't worry I know my limitations," Sakura reassured her. Sakura let Hinata get away with changing the subject, for now. If Hinata wanted to talk to her about it, then Sakura would wait until Hinata was ready to bring it up herself.

"Thank you for coming to rescue me, Hinata."

"You're welcome, Sakura. I'm glad that you're going to be okay," Hinata replied.

"But you didn't have to. You could have refused such a dangerous mission, but you didn't. That took courage, and a lot of backbone. You should be proud of yourself, Hinata. Someday I hope to become as brave as you are."

Hinata shook her head, blushing. "I'm not brave. I wish that I was as strong as you are, Sakura. Then maybe he'll notice me."

"Hinata, you may have the best eyesight, but you're blind. Naruto does notice you. Do you remember, all those years ago, during the Chuunin exams, when you fought Neji?"

Hinata nodded.

"Naruto cheered you on, and made a vow to defeat Neji because he'd hurt you."

Hinata remained silent, lost in memories.

Sakura decided not to prod any further. "Hinata, you can go and get some rest. I'll be fine here."

"I'm fine, Sakura. I'd rather be have some company for awhile if you don't mind."

"Okay. To tell you the truth, I wouldn't mind at all. It would be nice to have some female companionship every so often."

The two female kunoichi spent the rest of the night talking as teenage girls were wont to do.

* * *

**Whew sorry about the late update. I've decided to extend this story for a few more chapters I'm thinking. So I won't end it so soon! Review and tell me what you think and please point out any mistakes that I have made and I will try to correct them! Thanks!**

**belle2990**


	9. Decisions

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. There would be sufficient changes if I did.**

**Thanks for the reviews you guys! And I'll try to read this one a couple of times to check for any mistakes…**

* * *

**Chapter Nine: Decisions**

When Sakura woke up it was already light outside. She realized that most of her chakra had come back, and she began to heal herself fully. When she was done she realized that her abdomen was still a bit sore, but she could walk and do everything without the pain hindering her.

She saw that everyone else was packed and ready to go, and grumbled at everyone for not waking her up sooner. She became her normal, cheery self, however, after she had some breakfast and washed herself at the stream.

She saw Hinata approach Naruto and was about to say something when Naruto noticed Sakura.

"Sakura! I have something important to tell you!"

Sakura sighed. "Naruto, Hinata was about to talk to you. You should go apologize and see what she wanted."

"Oh? Hinata! Sorry about that! It's just that you're so quiet I didn't hear you!"

Hinata gulped. "It-it's okay, Naruto."

"So what were you saying?"

"Um…well…nothing, really. I just…wanted to say good morning!"

"Oh. Well, good morning, Hinata!" Naruto beamed at her, and then turned to find Sakura and tell her the good news, but found her engaged in her own conversation.

* * *

"What are you doing, Sasuke? Konoha's this way."

Sakura had noticed that Sasuke was walking in the wrong direction as she started walking towards Konoha.

"I'm not going to Konoha," was his reply. "Didn't Naruto tell you?"

"W-what do you mean?" Sakura frowned as she ran up to Sasuke. "I thought-"

Sasuke sighed. _Stupid Naruto. _He didn't want to tell Sakura, so he decided to make her mad at him to avoid any confrontation. "No, you didn't think. I told you before that I would never return home until I avenged my clan." Sasuke continued walking, hands in his pockets.

Sakura's eyes filled with tears.

Sai shook his head at Sasuke. He may be new to emotions, but it didn't take an expert to figure out that Sasuke's words were harsh and hurtful. For some reason it bothered him that Sakura was hurt by it. He made no move to interfere, however. He didn't feel that it was his place.

Naruto was about to yell at Sasuke when Hinata stopped him by gently grabbing his arm. "L-let them be, Naruto. It's their fight." Naruto was shocked by Hinata's forthright attitude.

He frowned, but nodded. He kept a close eye on Sasuke, however, as they moved farther away to give Sakura and Sasuke some privacy. Sai did the same.

* * *

"Sasuke…after all this time, all that's happened…I would've thought that you would want to go home." Sakura looked pleadingly into Sasuke's obsidian eyes.

"Nothing's changed."

"That's a lie! Everything's changed!" Sakura grabbed onto the front of his shirt and slammed him up against a tree. Her voice took on a quiet, yet forceful tone. "_You've _changed, Sasuke."

_So much for avoiding confrontation. _"Hn. How so?"

Sakura looked down his face for a moment, and then back up into his eyes. "Like this."

Sakura gently pressed her lips to Sasuke's. Once again shocked by Sakura's audacity, Sasuke did nothing. When he didn't respond, Sakura broke the kiss.

"Don't you feel anything for me, Sasuke?" Sakura asked quietly. Her eyes grew misty as she stared at the only man/boy she had ever loved.

Sakura was not prepared for what happened next. Sasuke growled low in his throat and suddenly Sakura found _herself_ against the tree, with Sasuke pinning her there.

"Sasuke, what are-" she was cut off as Sasuke crushed his lips to hers. Sakura's eyes widened, then gave in the to immense joy and pleasure she was feeling.

Sakura groaned as Sasuke deepened this kiss. She clutched the front of his shirt as one of Sasuke's hands gripped her hip and the other one held the back of her head.

Sakura was so lost in the kiss that she didn't hear someone clear their throat. Loudly. As much as Sasuke wanted to prolong the kiss, he broke apart. Sakura almost fell to the ground. Her mind was fuzzy as she registered the fact that she was cold now.

"What-"

Naruto cleared his throat again. "We should get moving."

Red tinged Sakura's cheeks as she realized that she and Sasuke had just kissed in front of their friends. Sakura became mortified, but in no way regretted what had transpired between her and Sasuke.

She stole a peek at Sasuke. It seemed like nothing had affected him, yet Sakura detected the slight rise and fall of his chest, signifying that he was out of breath.

Naruto, much to everyone's surprise, did nothing to ridicule them. Hinata had a small smile on her face, and was even blushing herself. Sai had his ever-present fake smile on, and pretended like nothing had happened. They all started walking again, leaving Sasuke and Sakura alone.

There was an awkward silence between the two until Sakura broke the silence.

"Why did you kiss me?" she asked, her voice barely louder than a whisper.

"Why did _you _kiss _me_?" Sasuke returned.

"Sasuke, you know the answer to your question. I-I love you, and I wanted to express my love-"

"Sakura, it's fine. Just forget it happened." Sasuke turned around and was about to leave when Sakura's hand on his arm stopped him.

After a few moments he turned to look at her. She was touching her lips, still swollen from Sasuke's kiss.

"Sasuke…I can't forget it. Are you telling me that it meant so little that you can easily erase it from your memory?" Sakura looked pleadingly at him.

Her hand dropped to her side, and she fiddled with the hem of her shirt.

Sasuke couldn't help himself. She was like an addictive drug; once he had a taste of her he craved more. His mind told him to stop, but his heart told him to keep going. Sasuke raised his hand and tenderly touched her soft, pale cheek.

Sakura's eyes widened. "Sasuke-"

She was silenced by Sasuke thoroughly ravishing her mouth. Again.

Only this time no one interrupted them. This kiss was much slower, and gentler, but it was still passionate. Sakura expected his tongue to be rough, but it was surprisingly smooth and soft. She was hesitant to allow him entrance at first, but with a gentle prodding from Sasuke she opened her mouth, letting him in. Sakura groaned as she tasted him. Soon she was kissing him with as much passion and fervor as he was kissing her with.

Sakura was disappointed when Sasuke broke the kiss, but her lungs were screaming for air as well. Sakura could feel her lungs expanding and retracting, and her stomach had butterflies in it. She was clinging to Sasuke's shirt, for if she let go she knew that she would fall. He made her weak at the knees, and her mind was just not working properly.

She shook her head to clear her mind. Sakura cleared her throat as she let go of Sasuke.

Before she could say anything, Sasuke leaned into her again. Sakura thought that he was going to kiss her again, and her eyes drifted shut. But instead of his lips on hers, she felt them on her forehead.

She opened her eyes to see Sasuke looking down at her with his dark eyes. Only this time they weren't harsh and cold, but rather…warm.

She opened her mouth to say something, but Sasuke beat her to it. "Sakura…it means a lot to me that you still care about me after all that I've done. And…I…"

Sakura waited for him to say the words she had dreamt of for years.

"…care about you." Sasuke had a troubled look on his face, as if he was frustrated that he couldn't say what he wanted.

Sakura, instead of being disappointed that Sasuke couldn't say what she wanted him to say, was ecstatic. For him to admit that he had feelings of any sort (besides hatred and anger) for anyone was a major breakthrough. Inner Sakura was raging!

Sakura could tell how hard that was for him, so she decided to let him off the hook. She gently wrapped her arms around him and squeezed him in a comforting hug.

"Sasuke…thank you."

He said nothing, but squeezed her back in return. Tears sprang to her eyes as she was held in Sasuke's warm embrace. She tried to scoot in closer to him, but something hard was pushing against her stomach.

She looked down to find that it was the purple rope around Sasuke's waist. Her hands were touching something hard at his back, too. Kusanagi, his sword. Sakura unconsciously stiffened in his embrace.

Sasuke pulled back, a stoic look on his face.

"Sasuke…what are you planning on doing now?" Sakura whispered.

"I told you already. Nothing's changed. First I have to beat that bastard Orochimaru. I've learned all I need to from him by now. Then I will avenge and repopulate my clan."

He said all of this as if he'd said a thousand times. Sakura was silent for a moment, and looked him deep in his black eyes.

"Sasuke, will you take me with you this time?"

Instead of answering, Sasuke let go of her and walked towards the other three members of their group. Sakura waited a few seconds before catching up to him.

She didn't press for an answer from him. Just that fact that he hadn't told her, "No," right off was a good sign. She hoped, anyways.

* * *

They traveled mostly in silence, except for Naruto making the occasional comment. But it was quiet, even for Naruto. Everyone could tell there was something bothering him. No one wanted to ask what was wrong with him. Except for Hinata, of course, but she didn't feel brave enough in front of so many people.

After about an hour of traveling, Naruto stopped. So did the others.

"Let's camp here for tonight," Naruto stated. He took off his traveling pack and started setting up his tent. While she was busy setting up her and Hinata's tent, Sakura saw Sasuke go into the woods by himself. She had enough common sense not to follow him, but she still wondered what he was doing.

"Sakura?"

"Yes, Hinata?"

The shy girl was twiddling her fingers, a sure sign of nervousness.

"Are you…are you and Sasuke…" she gulped and tried to start over. "Sasuke and you…uh…"

"You mean are we boyfriend and girlfriend?" Sakura put her out of her misery. Hinata nodded, bright spots of red on her cheeks.

Sakura stopped what she was doing and frowned. She looked towards the place where Sasuke had wandered off to, but she couldn't see him. "To tell you the truth…I don't know."

Hinata looked confused. "O-okay."

"Well…I guess I didn't want to pressure him into doing anything. He just barely opened up to me and well…I didn't want to scare him off." Sakura smiled a little. "He admitted that he cares about me, though, so that's a start."

"But, don't you want him to be your boyfriend?" Hinata was still confused.

Sakura sighed. "Of course I do. I'd like nothing better in the world." Sakura looked Hinata in her violet eyes. "But sometimes you have to let them realize they love you on their own, and let _them _come to _you_. Do you understand what I'm saying, Hinata?"

Hinata nodded, catching the double meaning. _So I should let Naruto come to me? _"But what if they never realize-"

"They will. Sometimes it just takes a little…prodding…on our parts." Sakura grinned.

"Prodding?"

"Well, let's say that they thought that they would lose us forever. Maybe they'll realize their true feelings when it would be too late to say them."

Hinata blanched.

"Oh, I'm not saying you should go and try to die! Not at all. More like…oh, I don't know what I was saying. Just forget about it!" Sakura waved a hand to signal the end of the conversation.

"O-okay," Hinata said. The two girls returned to pitching their tent in a comfortable silence, with Hinata mulling over Sakura's advice.

Five minutes later Sasuke emerged from the trees. Sakura frowned, and then smiled when she saw him.

Sasuke's attire was different. He had gotten rid of the purple rope around his waist, and Kusanagi was now at his side, attached by a belt loop from his black pants. His shirt, however, still remained open in the chest area, causing Sakura's gaze to linger longer at that particular area.

Sasuke realized that Sakura was staring. "Sakura, is there something you wanted to say?"

He smirked at her reddening cheeks and her stammer. "I…well…no…um…" She sighed in frustration at his smirk.

She decided to change the subject. "So does that mean that you're with Konoha again?"

Sasuke's smirk disappeared. "My allegiance is to myself."

"You mean to your revenge." Sakura didn't know why she felt like arguing, but she did. And there was no one that made her madder than Sasuke. She wanted to get _him_ riled up for a change.

Sasuke folded his arms. "If that's the way you want to look at it."

"Gah! You're impossible!" Sakura threw her arms up in the air.

Sasuke raised an eyebrow at her childish antics.

"And you're immature."

"Immature? Oh, I'll give you immature." She folded her arms across her chest, mimicking Sasuke.

She spoke in a deep, monotonous voice. "I'm the cold-hearted Uchiha who's so _immature_ that I can't admit what's really in my heart. I hide behind my quest for revenge to avoid dealing with _feelings._ I act like I have none but I really do."

Sasuke glared at her. "What is that supposed to mean?"

"Gah! It meant exactly what I said!"

Sasuke turned his nose up at her. "Hn."

Sakura, in response, rolled her eyes at him and stuck her tongue out, but quickly retracted it so he wouldn't see.

They stood there, silently glaring at each other, before Sakura finally relented.

"Whatever. But you still haven't answered my question. Are with us or not?"

"I don't really care. I'm going to kill Orochimaru. And then Itachi. And I will show them no mercy." Sasuke's expression hardened as he said this, and his voice sent a chill down her spine.

"I'm coming with you." It was a statement, not a question.

"Whatever."

Sakura's anger disappeared.

"Sasuke…there's something you should know."

"What?"

"I….I know Itachi's weakness."

* * *

**Short chapter, I know. But I included some SasuSaku fluff for you guys, as requested. I'll try and update ASAP, kay?**

**If you haven't read the manga chapter 343 yet don't read ahead then!**

**So if you have read the manga you can read this!**

**I am so psyched that Sasuke is finally cutting off his ties with Orochimaru…what a sick man. It was a little bit of a shock to me as it happened all of a sudden. And I'm a little disappointed that Sakura and Naruto weren't there…but hopefully they'll show up soon! At least they're finally showing Sasuke again! I cannot wait until the next chapter! Yeeeeeeeeesssssssssssssssss!!!!!!!!!!! Anyways just had to get that off my chest! **

**So as always read (well…since you're reading this I guess you already did…how silly of me) and review please! **


	10. Itachi's Weakness

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

**Wow…thanks for the reviews and (for some of you) positive feedback! I actually got over 30 reviews for one chapter…if that doesn't sound like a lot well then OH WELL! Perhaps it was because of the kissing scene…hmmm…**

**Dust-in: **Shikamaru and Temari went back to Konoha to inform Tsunade of what had happened. In chapter eight, Sasuke told them to go back and get Tsunade for help. I haven't included Tsunade yet because I don't think that they could make it back to Konoha plus catch up with Sasuke and the gang…but don't worry I'll be incorporating Shikamaru and Temari back into my story…

**Rainingblood666**--Oh my gosh I soooo want to see Sakura fight Kabuto too! That would be freaking awesome! Wait a minute! I can make that happen! (at least in my own little world called fan fiction: )

**By they way if it's been a long time since you've read chapters 7 and 8 you should probably go back and reread it to refresh your memory…**

**If you aren't updated with the manga than you are missing out! Here's the website for the newest chapter in the manga (Sasuke kicks Orochimaru's butt!) He's so freaking hott! (yah it sounds pathetic I know) : ) **

h t t p://groups(dot)msn(dot)com/NarutoMangaReturns/344mq(dot)msnw

**Oh, and I don't write lemons (just wondering…is that pronounced like the fruit?). I would probably be really bad at writing them…and it just feels weird. So, sorry if you guys were expecting one.**

**On with the story!**

**

* * *

**

**Chapter Ten: Itachi's Weakness**

"_Sasuke…there's something you should know." _

"_What?"  
_

"_I…I know Itachi's weakness."_

* * *

Sasuke's heart nearly stopped. "What do you mean?" 

Sakura spoke quietly. "When I was held captive, I discovered something." Sakura took a deep breath to calm her nerves. As much as she wanted to forget what happened in that dark hole, it needed to be said.

Sasuke, in his one moment of true kindness, said, "Sakura…you don't have to say it if it makes you uncomfortable. Wait until you're ready."

Sakura smiled gently at him. Her love for him shown in her eyes as she said, "That means a lot to me, Sasuke."

"Hn."

Sasuke shrugged it off as nothing, but Sakura knew better. She would have elaborated more on the subject if she hadn't needed to say something.

"The first thing I remember after Deidara got me was waking up in a dark room."

Sasuke nodded. "I'm pretty sure that's the same room that we found you in."

"Oh…so how did you guys find me anyways?"

Sasuke waved a hand. "I'll tell you later. Tell me about Itachi's weakness." Sasuke looked eager, a look Sakura had never seen in him before.

She suddenly stood up a little taller and thrust her shoulders back and angled her head up at him. It felt good knowing something he didn't, for once. Sakura would've kept him in suspense longer, but she knew that to Sasuke, this was no laughing matter.

Sasuke stared at her, his patience wearing thin. If he was a restless person he would've tapped his foot, but Sasuke kept still unless there would serve a purpose in moving.

Sakura took a deep breath. "Well, I really wasn't awake. More like semi-conscious. A blue man, who I later identified as Kisame, and another man, Itachi, were speaking…

* * *

Sakura swallowed the lump in her throat. Sasuke had to fight the urge to try and comfort her. 

While Sakura had been reminiscing, Sasuke had felt himself growing angrier and angrier. He told himself that it was because of the mention of Itachi, but deep down inside he knew that it so much more. He heard the barely noticeable quiver in Sakura's voice as she voiced the painful memories. He closed his eyes and took a deep breath to calm his nerves so that he would remain calm on the outside.

Sakura was about to continue when Naruto interrupted them.

"Hey, are you two coming or what?!"

Sasuke glared at him. "Go away."

Sakura managed a small smile. "Naruto, do you think you could give us a few more minutes? It's kind of important…"

Naruto crossed his arms and pouted. "Fine. As long as you guys aren't over here doing _inappropriate_ things again…"

Sakura's face turned as pink as her hair and started to stutter.

"N-Naruto, we…we weren't…d-doing-"

"We're just talking. Now go away." Sasuke spared her the embarrassment of trying to continue.

Naruto mumbled something about liars and perverts before drudging back to the others, who were now fifteen minutes ahead of Sasuke and Sakura.

"Thanks, Sasuke."

Sasuke replied in a quiet, serious way. "You know, you don't have to be ashamed of it."

Sakura's eyes widened in surprise. "I'm not ashamed of it, Sasuke!"

"Hn."

Sakura was about to argue more, but Sasuke stopped her.

"Are you going to tell me his weakness or what?"

"Oh, sorry, Sasuke. Well, after I woke up for the second time, Itachi was there. I asked him what he wanted, and he said that he wanted you."

Sasuke perked up. "He wanted me?"

Sakura nodded, then rolled her eyes at the display of masculine pride when Sasuke heard that his brother had finally acknowledged him.

"I asked him what he wanted with you, and he said that he wanted to kill you because then Orochimaru would be forced to have a weaker vessel, and then they would kill Orochimaru."

Sasuke's ego deflated a bit when he found out that the only reason his brother wanted him was not to fight him, but to kill him.

"We exchanged a few more questions-"

"What questions?" Sasuke interrupted.

Sakura waved a hand. "Nothing important. Anyways, he got angry when I started talking back, and the next thing I knew I was in the Mangekyou Sharingan." Sakura stopped, and frowned. She remembered what had happened to her, but for some reason she was hesitant to tell Sasuke that Itachi took the form of Sasuke while he tortured her for three days.

"You don't have to tell me what happened, Sakura. Just skip that part."

Sakura looked up. "Sasuke…you know, you can be real sweet sometimes."

"Hn. Are you going to finish or what?"

"Well, after he did it to me the first time, he left me in the room. Surprisingly enough, I was still in my right state of mind, although I was so weak I couldn't even lift a finger. I don't know how much time had passed before he came back. But when he did he became angry when I didn't answer his questions. I found myself in Mangekyou Sharingan again. Only this time, something happened. Do you remember when I fought Ino in the Chuunin Exams?"

Sasuke remained silent.

Sakura gave a bitter laugh. "Oh, that's right. You didn't see it. Well, did Kakashi-sensei tell you what happened?"

After still not receiving an answer, Sakura sighed. "Oh. Well, Ino caught me with her Mind Transfer Jutsu, and she almost won. Only, there was another person inside of me…another me. The other side of me kicked Ino out of my mind, which has never happened before."

"How is that possible?" Sasuke asked.

"Exactly. I don't know. Kakashi told me later on that it was partly because Ino was low on chakra. But then he also said that it was because of my defiant heart and combative attitude towards Ino. He told me that, like Naruto, my fighting spirit was stronger than in others, allowing me to overcome obstacles that would otherwise be beyond my abilities."

Sasuke absorbed this bit of information. He had known that Ino and her had tied for the match, as Kakashi had told him that much, but at the time he really hadn't cared. Now he wished he could've seen her match. For a moment he was ashamed at himself. He was always underestimating both her and Naruto, thinking himself far beyond their capabilities. He quickly shook off the feeling. He was an _Uchiha_ prodigy after all.

Sakura continued, unaware of Sasuke's internal conflict. "Well, I think it was nearing the third day when something inside of me snapped. I've never felt that way before…it was like I was a completely different person…"

* * *

_Itachi, masquerading as Sasuke yet again, pulled his arm back to stab Sakura again. But her screams stopped suddenly._

_He looked over to the side, and he saw another Sakura, but this one was different. He had no idea what the hell was going on, so he watched as the new Sakura walked towards the one he had been stabbing, and she touched her gently. Then she disappeared, almost looking like they were fusing with each other._

_He looked at her. Her head was lowered, facing the ground, and her pink hair covered her face so that he couldn't see her expression. Itachi wished that it would've stayed like that. _

"_Stop." Her voice was deeper, and so cold._

_Itachi stopped in midair when he was about to bring down the sword again. Her head slowly raised to look at him. He could see her face…her cool gaze at him. Gone was the fear, and pain. Her expression was hard, and full barely restrained fury._

"_You'd better get out of my mind right now."_

_Itachi smirked. "I'm impressed that you haven't gone insane yet. All you have to do is answer my question and I'll free you from this world of pain."_

_The last thing he expected was Sakura to smirk. "I've already freed myself."_

_Itachi frowned when she started to glow a light green color. _Her chakra…_he thought. _

_He could feel the air around him grow heavy, and he found himself taking a step back to observe this new development. No one had ever defied him in his own world before. _What is so special about this girl?_ he asked himself._

_The pebbles around her started to tremble. A crater was slowly forming around her. The ropes began to smoke, and then they snapped and she fell from the cross. Blood was dripping off of her, but she paid it no heed. Rather than fall on her knees, as Itachi would've expected her to, she landed quiet softly on her toes, and touched down gracefully._

_Itachi decided that this was enough. He could sense that something big was about to happen, and brought up the sword to end it._

"_I warned you," said the pink-haired girl._

_She looked at him with her piercing green eyes and everything seemed to stop for a second. Then there was a sonic boom and the last thing he saw was a green wave of chakra coming towards him, and then darkness._

_Sakura cried out in pain as her mind was free of the Mangekyou Sharingan. She was panting, and couldn't summon the energy to energy to move. She barely lifted her head and saw Itachi on the opposite side of the room, slumped against wall. He groaned and stirred, and Sakura tried to move at all. She knew she was not going to like whatever he did to her once she was awake, and commanded her body to move. Her mind may have worked, but he body wasn't listening._

_Her eyes widened in fear as Itachi fully woke up and looked around in confusion. She saw his black eyes turn a frightening red as he looked at her._

_He stood up and advanced towards her. She tried to move, but her body wasn't listening to her mind. He grabbed her neck and lifted her up so abruptly by it that it almost snapped. Her eyes widened and they were fearful now. He got close to her face and his voice was quiet, but she detected the barely restrained fury behind it, like the eye of the hurricane._

"_What the hell are you?" _

_Sakura tried to speak, but no words came out. He was cutting off her air, and she couldn't even summon the strength to struggle. Her vision grew blurry and she almost passed out, but a fiery pain in her stomach woke her up._

_She would've screamed had she the breath. Before he stabbed her again, Itachi leaned in and said something in her ear. Her eyes widened, and she saw, in her mind's eye, what Itachi was describing. _

_Sakura's mind was lost. The trauma of experiencing the Mangekyou Sharingan twice and what Itachi had just described to her made her lost to the real world. _

_Itachi knew it and dropped her. The both fell to the floor, Sakura wheezing from the lack of air and Itachi panting for air as well. That was how Kisame found them._

* * *

"My mind was somewhere else, but there was part of me that still awake. I could hear everything that was going on, I just couldn't respond to it. I heard Kisame come in and he asked Itachi why he used Mangekyou Sharingan if it makes him so weak. Itachi replied that it usually didn't, and told Kisame that I had defeated his Mangekyou Sharingan. He described what happened in Mangekyou Sharingan, and then Kisame told him that the plan had changed, and that a group of Konoha shinobi had appeared. Their leader ordered them to evacuate. Kisame had questioned his orders, because the Kyuubi holder was there, but the leader was in one of his moods again, so they both left. And then you guys came and well…you know the rest." 

"What did Itachi whisper to you to make you lose your mind like that?" Sasuke inquired, curious.

Sakura opened her mouth, and then shut it again. "Sasuke…I-I'm not ready to remember that just yet."

She hugged her knees to her chest, lay her chin on her knees.

"Thank you for telling me what happened, Sakura."

"I'd do anything for you, Sasuke." Sakura looked at him, a serious expression on her face.

"I know." After a moment, he looked up at the sky. "So Itachi's strength is also his weakness? How pitiful."

Sasuke stood up, and put a hand on Sakura's shoulder. "It means a lot that you still trust me after everything, Sakura. I promise I won't do anything to break that bond now that it is so freshly remade again."

Sakura stood up and hugged Sasuke. "I love you."

Sasuke tightened his arms around her. They held each other for a few more moments and then Sasuke pulled back. He lowered his head and kissed her.

Before they got too carried away, Sasuke broke the heated kiss and said, "We should be getting back."

Sakura, wanting the kiss to go on, was disappointed, but nodded.

They quickly caught up with the others as Sasuke began formulating a plan.

**

* * *

Okay guys I am really sorry about the last update but I got a total of about fifteen hours sleep last week because I had to perform a play for drama all last week and then get home really late and do homework until all hours of the night. So that's my excuse. Once again I'm really sorry!**


	11. Traps

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. I also don't own the title "When Calls the Heart". It was the title of a book by Janette Oke…I forgot to mention that before. So don't sue me.**

**Thanks for the reviews!**

**Dust-in:** Deidara will be back, either in this fic or the sequel. But don't have high hopes for him and Ino. And I don't hate Itachi because of the way people portray him in their fics. I genuinely hate him. Why wouldn't anyone? Hello, he massacred his entire family and clan! Not to mention he's the reason Sasuke left Konoha in the first place…yah, I'm still bitter about that.

**Sleepykittycat: **Yah that's not what Itachi whispered to Sakura. And you're darn right she deserves some recognition! Have you seen the Shippuuden episode where Kakashi and Naruto find out who strong she got over two and a half years? The look on their faces was priceless. As for your problem with the story: well, they never mentioned anything about having any type of medical training to become a Genin so I assumed that they didn't. They found Akatsuki's hideout by following Deidara and using Hinata's Byakugan, which I assume has gotten better over the time-skip. Sorry if it seems that unrealistic, but their all Chuunin (excluding Naruto and Sasuke) so I assumed that their skills also got better. Sorry if it sounded unrealistic or anything. But they had to find Sakura or she would've died! And we can't have out heroine die…now can we (at least not yet)? Overall I'm glad you like my writing! It's always nice to have a fan!

* * *

**Chapter Eleven: Traps**

Sasuke and Sakura caught up with Naruto, Hinata, and Sai. Before they went any further, Hinata stopped them.

"What is it?" Sakura asked.

"Don't move your foot, Sakura."

"Why?"

Sasuke looked and swore. "Sakura, look what you're stepping on."

She looked down and frowned. The sunlight glinted of something. Upon closer inspection, she found that it was a string. A string that led to…

"Oh no," she whispered.

"Hyuuga, use your Byakugan and see where it leads." Sasuke closed his eyes, and his jaw clenched in fury.

"Byakugan!" Hinata concentrated more chakra into her eyes so that she could follow the near-invisible line. She gasped.

"This whole area is set to explode! It leads to a tree with dozens of explosive tags. If Sakura lifts up her foot, it will trigger them all."

For once, Hinata wasn't quiet or stuttering. Naruto was impressed.

Sakura swallowed.

Sasuke swore. "Damnit Sakura! Why didn't you watch where you were going?"

"Well excuse me! I'm not perfect, okay?!" She clenched her fists. _Damnit! I am so stupid! How could I not notice it?_

"Knock it off you two! You sound like an old married couple," grumbled Naruto.

Sakura's cheeks tinted red and Sasuke folded his arms.

"Hn."

Sai smiled his fake smile. "Now, now. Shouldn't we worry about that trap that Sakura's about to spring?"

Sasuke's face clouded over. "Damnit. Hyuuga, is there any way for Sakura to let go and not trip the mechanism?"

Hinata shook her head. "I don't see any."

Sakura sighed. "Well then, there's only one thing to do."

"What?" Naruto asked.

"You guys should just leave-"

"Sakura we're not leaving you! Don't even think of sacrificing yourself for us!" Sasuke would've grabbed her, but moving her was improbable at this point.

Sakura blushed. "Uh…actually, I was going to say, you guys should just leave and look for a weak spot in the trap so that I can get out of here."

Sasuke blanched, and then turned around and folded his arms across his chest. "Hn. I knew that."

Naruto rolled his eyes. "Sure."

"Hinata, you're sure there's not a weak point in the string?" Sakura asked, the mood serious again.

Hinata used her Byakugan to search, but could find none. "I'm sorry, Sakura, but I don't see one."

Naruto looked at Sasuke. "What do you want to do, Sasuke?"

"We should do like Sakura said, and split up and look for a way out of it."

Everyone nodded and they all jumped in the air, but not before Sasuke and Sakura exchanged a look.

* * *

Five minutes later Sasuke swore vehemently. He could find nothing to help Sakura.

Hinata, Sai, and Naruto could find nothing either.

They all met at the beginning of one of the ends.

They were about to head back to Sakura when a blast knocked them off their feet. They each got up shakily, and Hinata gasped.

"Oh no…"

"No," Sasuke whispered. "Sakura!"

* * *

The entire area within fifty almost completely obliterated. All they could see were high-rising flames quickly devouring anything in it's wake. Sasuke ran as fast as his legs could carry him. He sniffed the air, expecting to smell burnt flesh. But he only smelled smoke.

They raced to the place where they had left Sakura. The surrounding trees had been completely blown away, and there was a crater where Sakura had been standing moments ago.

They approached the edge of the crater cautiously, and covered their faces so they wouldn't inhale the smoke.

"Sakura!" Sasuke yelled. He coughed as the smoke consumed all of the rest of the oxygen in the air.

"Byakugan!" Hinata's all-seeing eyes scanned the surrounding foliage. "I see her!"

Sasuke glanced sharply at her. "Where?"

"Right in the middle. She-she's alive!"

Naruto stepped forward. "Then we've got to go in there!"

Hinata grabbed his arm, stopping him. "N-Naruto, there's no path to her…"

Naruto looked down at her. "But-"

"I'll go."

"Sasuke-"

Sasuke didn't look at him as he cut him off. "I wasn't there for her before. I can finally make up for lost time."

While they were talking, Hinata frowned. "Sasuke, she's not there anymore."

"What? What do you mean? She's not-"

"Dead? Now, why would I be dead? You all can't think a little explosion would kill me?"

They all turned to see Sakura standing behind them, a hand on her hip and smiling.

"Sakura? What the hell happened?" By his expression, Sakura could tell that Sasuke was beyond angry.

Sakura swallowed. "Well, you see…it happened like this…"

* * *

_Sakura swore. "There's no weakness in the trap. Hinata said so herself. Damnit! Sasuke's probably ranting about how weak I am, and what a dead weight I am, always bringing them down. Well, not anymore. I won't let them get hurt because of me. From now on, I can take care of myself."_

_She closed her eyes and concentrated. "All of their chakras are far enough away that they won't be hurt by the blast. I guess it's now or never."_

_Without moving her feet, Sakura bent her knees and began gathering chakra into her chakra points. After a few minutes, she took a deep breath and as she exhaled, she stepped off of the string. At the same time she released the jutsu, and the chakra exploded all around her, blowing away the oncoming flames. The chakra surrounded her while the flames engulfed the area around her, but her jutsu shielded her from harm. After the blast, she released the jutsu, and then, emitting chakra from her hands, blew away the flames and made a path through the flames. _

* * *

"And well, then I saw you guys….and here I am!"

Sasuke glared at her. "Do you know how stupid that was?"

Sakura flinched. "Sasuke-"

"You do realize that if your jutsu hadn't worked that you'd be dead."

"But-"

"Not to mention that you potentially endangered the lives of everyone else."

"I checked to make sure you guys weren't near-"

"Sakura, that was a very stupid thing to do." Sakura looked down on the ground. Instead of trying to argue even further, she bowed her head in defeat. _Well, he's right,_ she mentally agreed with Sasuke.

Nothing surprised her more than what happened next. She saw a shadow loom over her, and then a pair of strong arms encircled her, and squeezed for a moment. Sakura stood there while Sasuke gently hugged her.

"I'm glad you're okay," he whispered in her ear. He held her for a few more moments and then let go abruptly. His voice resumed it's usual coldness. "And don't you _ever_ do that again."

Sakura bit her lip to keep from smiling. She nodded her agreement.

Naruto came up to her and gave her a big hug. "Sakura! You really had me worried there! I thought you were dead! But that jutsu is so cool! Hey are you okay you're face is turning blue!"

"Idiot, you're strangling her. She can't breathe." Sasuke glared at Naruto.

Naruto instantly let go of Sakura and looked sheepish. "Sorry, Sakura."

Sakura coughed and wheezed out, "It's okay, Naruto."

Even more to Sakura's surprise, Sai came up and gave her a hug too.

"What was that for?" she asked.

Sai smiled, this one actually genuine. "Well, everyone else did. I read in a book somewhere that that's what friends do sometimes."

Sakura nodded. "Thanks, Sai."

Hinata smiled at Sakura, and Sakura did likewise.

After a few moments of silence, Sakura spoke in a cheerful tone. "Well, shall we be moving on?"

Everyone but Sasuke nodded.

"What's wrong, Sasuke?" Sakura asked, seeing his expression.

"Nothing," he said quietly.

"You look troubled," Sai observed. Sasuke shot him a glare.

"Hn."

Sakura rolled her eyes. _He never changes._

* * *

_Yesterday morning._

_Hokage's office._

"Tsunade!" Shizune burst into the Hokage's office.

"Hmm? Oh, what is it, Shizune?" She quickly wiped away the tale-telling drool from the papers and blinked to rid herself of the aftereffects of sleep.

"Shikamaru and Temari are back!"

Tsunade frowned, not hearing the rest of the team's names'. "Send them in!"

Shikamaru and Temari walked in, dirty and tired.

"Report!"

Shikamaru quickly explained all that had transpired.

Tsunade had her hands folded in front of her, and closed her eyes in thought.

"Well, what are we going to do, Tsunade?" asked Shizune.

"Hokage, you should send ANBU-" Shikamaru started to suggest, but was interrupted by the Hokage.

"I need all the ANBU here for Konoha's protection. We're on the brink of war, not only with Orochimaru, but with Akatsuki as well. I'll assemble a team of Chuunins-"

"With all due respect, Hokage, this is an A-rank mission. We're dealing with Akatsuki _and _Orochimaru. I would suggest Jounin if nothing else-"

"Shikamaru, you're mind may be faster than mine, but I have the wisdom that only comes with age. I am the Hokage, and you will listen to and obey my orders!"

Shikamaru sighed. "Hai, Hokage. My apologies," he grumbled out.

Temari stepped forward. "I'll go."

Shikamaru groaned. "Temari!"

Temari ignored him. "I owe Naruto Gaara's life. I owe Sakura Kankuro's life. I owe them everything. The least I can do is go and rescue them."

Tsunade closed her eyes in thought. "Very well."

"Women are so troublesome," Shikamaru said under his breath.

"What was that, Shikamaru?" Tsunade asked, an eyebrow raised.

He grinned nervously and rubbed the back of his head. "Oh, I just said we men should be grateful you ladies are around."

Temari snorted.

Shikamaru cleared his throat. "What are my orders?"

"You'll assemble a team of Chuunin, or any Jounin that are available and go and bring back Naruto, Sakura, Sai, and Hinata. Here is the list of available Chuunin shinobi."

"What about Uchiha?"

Tsunade sighed. "I don't want to fight him as well. Feel free to try and bring him home, but it's not part of the mission."

"Hai."

Shikamaru and Temari bowed respectively and left the office. They went in search of the shinobi on the list and informed them of their duty as shinobi of Konoha.

* * *

"So what's the plan, Sasuke?" Sakura asked.

"Hey, wait a minute! Why don't you ask me what the plan is?" Naruto yelled.

"Okay, Naruto, what's the plan?" Sakura asked, feigning a nice voice.

"Uh…."

"Exactly. Sit down and shut-up." This time it was Sasuke who spoke.

Naruto grumbled out something inaudible, which made Hinata blush, and then knelt down next to her.

Sasuke closed his eyes. "First we…"

* * *

Unbeknownst to the five of them, two ninja were currently listening in on their so-called "plan of attack". One of them chuckled quietly.

"He will be mine now!" His long tongue extending to lick his lips greedily, a sinister look in his yellow eyes.

* * *

**Okay, you guys probably hate me by now. I'd apologize but y'all already know that I'm sorry for the lack of updating (I still made it within my one-week policy…although just barely). Anywho. **

**I'm still not sure where I want to end it and begin the new story, so we'll just wait and see what happens.**

**If you aren't updated with the manga, don't read ahead. (I know…it's tempting to, but if you do don't complain because I warned you!!!)**

**So I just read manga chapter 345...ARGGGGHHH! Who do you think it is? Sasuke or Orochimaru…what happens could have an impact on my story…I think that it's Orochimaru, just because I don't want it to be and it seems like they always do the OPPOSITE of what I want them to do…but anyways. I really really hope it's Sasuke, though…but I'm actually not sure if it is or not. Just have to wait for another week to find out! (I kind of wish I wasn't updated with the manga, just so I wouldn't have to wait forever to find out what happens). If I had a penny for every wish I ever made…okay, I'm rambling, so I'm going to go now.**

**Review please! Thanks!**

**belle2990**


	12. Attack!

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto. Or the majority of the fight between Sasuke and Orochimaru. That belongs to manga chapters 343-346.**

**Hey! Thanks for the all of the reviews! On with the story…**

* * *

**Chapter Twelve: Attack!**

"Ssssssaaaasssssssuke…"

Orochimaru's long, slimy tongue slithered around his mouth and licked his thin lips.

Kabuto glanced at him. "What should we do, Orochimaru?"

Orochimaru ignored him. "I have to have him now!"

* * *

Sasuke glanced back as he felt a familiar chakra. He looked at Sakura, who nodded. 

"I feel it too."

Sakura was about to call out to Naruto when someone landed right in front of Hinata and grabbed her hair, yanking her to him. Hinata cried out in pain, but stopped when a dagger was pressed to her throat.

Everyone stared in shock.

"Kabuto." Sasuke wasn't surprised to see him.

The silver-haired man smirked. "If any of you move, the Hyuuga heiress gets it in the neck."

"Let her go!" Naruto demanded, then growled when Kabuto pressed harder, spilling a drop of blood.

"Orochimaru's here." It was a statement, not a question. Sasuke knew that they would eventually find them.

Kabuto's smirk faded away.

"You shouldn't have betrayed Orochimaru, Sasuke. And after all he did for you…"

Sasuke glared. "I got what I wanted from him. He was of no further use to me."

"Tsk-tsk-tsk. Sasuke, you should've realized that you've now doomed all of your friends." Kabuto smirked at Sasuke's glare. "And I thought you had severed those bonds…"

"Shut up! Let Hinata go or you'll regret it Kabuto!" Sakura had had enough of Kabuto's taunting. She stepped forward, her fist raised.

Kabuto sighed. "Oh, yes. Don't worry, Sakura, I'll get to you later. Right now we have something more important." He grinned maliciously. "I'm not finished with you yet."

A chill went down Sakura's spine, but she didn't back down. "Kabuto, I'll give you one warning. If you don't let Hinata go, I will kill you."

He chuckled. "Your so-called 'powers' do not impress me. I am invincible you foolish girl. No one can beat me."

Sakura smirked. "Want to bet?"

Kabuto glared and Sakura saw him cut even more into Hinata's flesh. She glanced at Naruto, who was being surprisingly quiet.

"Oh no…" she whispered. Naruto's eyes were red, and his teeth were growing into fangs.

"Sasuke! You've got to suppress Kyuubi!"

Sasuke instantly entered Naruto's mind and halted the fox demon from coming forth. Naruto collapsed on the ground, panting. He was barely conscious, having had two spirits in his mind just then. He was trying to regain his strength and composure.

"Naruto!" Hinata whispered. Kabuto pressed the dagger even deeper, causing more of Hinata's blood to be spilled. Naruto didn't hear her.

Meanwhile Sai had been inconspicuously drawing. Kabuto was too busy taunting Sasuke and Sakura to notice that a very large tiger was ready to pounce on him. Hinata, using her Byakugan, saw this, and was prepared.

Kabuto felt something behind him, but by the time he realized it, it was too late. The tiger dug it's claws into Kabuto's back, making him scream in pain and release Hinata. She immediately swung around, preparing to attack.

Kabuto slashed at the tiger with a kunai, making it fall to the ground as harmless paper. Kabuto glared at Sai.

"You should've listened to Danzo, Sai. He knew where his loyalties were."

Sai's face remained impassive. "No, I needed to follow my instincts. They told me that whatever bond Naruto was trying to protect was stronger than my duty to Danzo. I now understand the bonds people have with friends."

Kabuto chuckled. "You've become quite the fool, Sai. And you were such the perfect killing machine."

Sai frowned. "I'm not a machine anymore."

"Sai, don't listen to him! He's just trying to rile you up!" Sakura cracked her knuckles. "I think it's high time that I took care of him, once and for all."

"Sakura, wait!" Sasuke tried to stop her, but it was too late. Sakura raised a chakra-enhanced fist and raced towards Kabuto. She was about to make contact with his face when something long and slimy wound itself around her outstretched arm and whipped her in the air.

She screamed as it whipped her back and forth, high in the air.

"Damnit!" Sasuke swore. He looked back and saw Orochimaru standing there, his long, slimy tongue holding on to Sakura.

"Orochimaru! Let her go!"

Orochimaru grinned.

His tongue trailed up her arm, and wound itself around her neck. Orochimaru squeezed tighter, cutting of her circulation. Sakura grabbed onto his tongue with her free hand, trying to pry it off of her.

Orochimaru grinned as he dodged a kunai thrown by Sasuke.

Sakura gave up trying to pry his tongue off, and reached towards her pouch and pulled out a kunai. She stabbed the tongue, making Orochimaru scream in pain. He released her, and Sakura started to build up her chakra to slow down her descent, when someone caught her in midair. She looked up.

"Sasuke…" she whispered. They landed on the ground unharmed, other than bruises on Sakura's arm and neck, but nothing serious.

"Thank you, Sasuke."

"Hn. Don't let it happen again."

Sakura nodded, knowing it was his way of saying "be careful."

Sasuke turned towards Orochimaru, and formed a chakra blade in his left hand, pulling out Kusanagi with the other. While Orochimaru was busy whimpering over his bleeding tongue, the lightning blade in his left hand shot forth. Orochimaru barely had time to put his arms in front of him. The blade went through his arms, but didn't pierce his torso.

Orochimaru seethed. "I knew it would come to this."

Sasuke's face remained stoic. "I have nothing more to learn from you. I won't show you any mercy either, not even if you beg for it." His Sharingan was activated, and the curse seal was rapidly spreading about him.

* * *

Meanwhile, Hinata was searching Kabuto's chakra system. There was something abnormal to it. She rushed forward to deliver a killing blow to his heart, but Kabuto sidestepped it. Hinata still managed to hit a chakra point, effectively stopping the chakra from flowing to that particular spot. 

She jumped back to avoid a kunai. Kabuto pushed his glasses up.

"Well well. You've improved since I last saw you. I believe your own cousin tried to kill you, am I correct?"

Hinata narrowed her veined eyes, but said nothing, knowing he was purposefully goading her. Kabuto started performing hand seals.

"What!" Hinata exclaimed. She had stopped his chakra flow into his left arm, so how he shouldn't be able to perform hand seals. On closer inspection, Hinata gasped. The damaged tissue was rapidly repairing itself.

"Hinata."

"Naruto!" Naruto shook his head and stood on his feet.

"Hinata, be careful. He's an experienced medic-nin, and an S-class criminal. His body can heal itself rapidly, on it's own volition."

Hinata nodded her head. "I understand Naruto."

"Hinata-"

"Naruto, please let me fight him."

"But-"

"Naruto…I don't want to see you get hurt again. Please, let me fight him by myself. I need to prove that I've become stronger."

"Hinata-"

"While I hate to interrupt this touching moment, I'm afraid that the Hyuuga clan will have to look for a new heiress." Kabuto threw a kunai at Hinata, which she easily dodged.

Hinata gulped, but retained her composure. "I-I will not be defeated!"

Kabuto shook his head. "It's impossible, Hinata. There's no way that you can win."

"Hinata!" Naruto yelled. "Don't listen to him!"

"Hinata…I know your strength. I've seen how frail and delicate your body is. I know your limits. Don't you remember, during the Chuunin exams, when I healed you?"

Recognition dawned on her face, but she didn't say anything.

"What is he talking about Hinata?"

"Didn't you know? Yes, poor Hinata had to miss her precious Naruto's match because of her injuries. I even went to all the trouble of healing her."

"Knock it off!" Naruto growled.

Kabuto smirked. He formed chakra blades in both of his hands and rushed at Hinata, who narrowed her eyes in determination. _I'm going to win!_

* * *

"Orochimaru, you are weaker than me. I no longer have any reason to give you my body." 

Orochimaru glared. "Big talk, coming from a second-rate Uchiha."

Sasuke shrugged. "Hn. It's true, if I hadn't been so weak, I would've never come to you. Besides, the only reason you wanted me was because you couldn't take care of Itachi yourself. Isn't that right, so-called 'genius of the Sannin'? I'm sure the world would consider one such as you a genius…However, you are nowhere near the level of genius that is the Uchiha. Compared to us, a person as you is as average as everyone else."

Sakura frowned at Sasuke. She'd never heard him talk like this to a superior…as if he was superior to them.

Sasuke continued in the same tone. "Looking upon you as one that carries the name of Uchiha, your pitiful attempts to acquire the power that we possess are simply laughable. Drug experimentation and transferring from one body to another? Your methods no longer had a point. Do you even have a goal anymore? You claim to be seeking the truth to all of existence…yet all you do is make excuses and mess with other people's lives as if you were God."

Orochimaru frowned, as if the words stung.

"You sicken me!" Sasuke ran forward, the chakra blade going through both of Orochimaru's hands, splattering blood everywhere. He drove Kusanagi deep into Orochimaru's torso.

Orochimaru screamed in pain, as his true form erupted from his mouth.

Sasuke turned around, looking at it. "So that is your true form? How fitting…a scaly, white serpent."

Sakura stared in horror. His true body was indeed a serpent-like creature, but unlike one she had ever seen. Instead of scales, there were miniature snake heads. His body was huge, towering over Sasuke. Orochimaru's face was cracked, like a snake head's. His straight black hair stood up everywhere, giving him the appearance of a deranged snake.

Sasuke spoke in an almost chiding manner. "So after all of your experiments…after jumping from one body to another…this is what you've become."

Orochimaru hissed. "Come now, Sasuke! Give me that body of yours!" His head shot forward, but Sasuke jumped to avoid it. The snake heads on Orochimaru's body shot out towards Sasuke, but he cut off their heads. Orochimaru hissed in pain.

Dozens of snake heads shot towards Sasuke.

Sasuke stood straight, and sheathed Kusanagi. He took off his shirt, and Sakura could see the curse seal spread to all of his body, and then center in one spot on the bridge of Sasuke's nose.

Sakura stared, wide-eyed at what Sasuke had become. His normally dark, spiky hair grew long, and became a dark blue. On his nose was a four-point star, and his lips were dark. But the most horrific thing were the wing-like claws that had grown out of Sasuke's back. They were in the shape of hands, yet they were a dark brown, sprouting claws. His eyes were jet black, except for the red of the Sharingan.

As the snakes engulfed him, Sasuke said, "Though the snake may dream of soaring through the skies, he is forever doomed to crawl on his belly."

"Sasuke!" Sakura yelled. She was about to run to his aid when the snake's went flying everywhere, spraying blood.

Sasuke stood there, in full curse seal mode, his web-like wings huge.

Sasuke smirked at Orochimaru's expression of rage. "Don't worry snake. You'll get your chance to soar…in the talons of a hawk."

"Sasuke!" Orochimaru screamed as his head shot towards Sasuke. Sasuke easily stepped aside, and cut off Orochimaru's head, using Kusanagi.

Sasuke stood over the still form of the snake, the curse seal disappearing.

"So this is the end…how disappointing."

Then his body pulsed, and Sasuke fell to his knees. "Kuh!"

The decapitated body was now rejoining itself with the snake head.

"It's starting to kick in I see," hissed Orochimaru. "The body fluids from this giant white snake vaporize when exposed to air. It's a numbing poison…" Orochimaru now towered over Sasuke. It's mouth was opened wide, ready to devour him. "I cannot be destroyed! You can't kill me with your insignificant jutsus. Now, I'll take you!"

Sasuke would've swore, but all that came out was, "Kuh, kuh."

The snake head shot forward. Sasuke activated his Sharingan, and closed his eyes. When he opened them he found himself somewhere else.

It was dark, and the ground was made of some type of gooey substance.

"What is this place?" he murmured.

The gooey substance began to take form. "This is a separate dimension inside of me. It's where we'll hold the ritual for transformation." The gooey material rose out of the ground. Orochimaru's face peeked out of it, his long tongue flickering out of his mouth. "Let's start…"

To Sasuke's horror the gooey substance was now coming out of his body, in the form of snakes. More shapes rose out of the ground, only their faces showing. They were the faces of the former bodies that Orochimaru had taken over. The substance was now covering Sasuke's body, except for his shoulders and head.

Sasuke activated his Sharingan. Orochimaru had a flashback, of when he had confronted Itachi, and had attempted to take over Itachi's body. Itachi had used his Sharingan power, and had stopped Orochimaru, saying that all of Orochimaru's jutsus were powerless against Sharingan eyes.

Sasuke now stared at him with those same eyes. _This is just like that time_, thought Orochimaru, as Sasuke was using Sharingan to stop him.

Orochimaru grinned like a madman, and rushed forward in the mass of gooey substance around him. "Those eyes…those eyes will finally be mine!"

Orochimaru suddenly stopped. The substance was retreating from Sasuke, and Orochimaru could no longer control it.

"This can't be happening!" he shouted. "I created this dimension! There's no way…"

"Orochimaru," Sasuke interrupted his rantings, "Against my eyes, all of your justus are…actually, you know the rest."

"I refuse to let this happen! I am Orochimaru! I am immortal! I WILL NOT DIE HERE! I am destined to discover the true meaning behind everything…destined to take control of everything in the world…I refuse…" Three monstrous shadows rose from the background and hovered menacingly over him. Sasuke smirked.

* * *

Sakura stood there, and watched as the large snake fell to the ground, lifeless. She frowned as she saw the sightless eyes. 

Sasuke just stood there. She approached him cautiously.

"Sasuke?"

He turned around.

"What happened?"

He smirked. "I've taken over."

* * *

**I'm sure you guys hate me right now. Eh…I've been tired. But I still made my weekly contribution to this story. Why don't I just say that I'll update every Friday…and if I can't I'll try and let you guys know ahead of time. (I tried to submit this chapter on Friday, and fanfic was being stupid so it wouldn't let me…so that wasn't my fault!) **

**So basically I was kind of having a brain fart. I couldn't think of how to get rid of Orochimaru in a believable way…so I just followed the manga (which was how I started this story). So if you haven't read it yet just pretend you didn't read this chapter.**

**Actually, the only part from the actual manga was Sasuke vs. Orochimaru. I didn't include Kabuto in it, however, because in my chapter Kabuto is engages elsewhere.**

**And this time we are nearing the end of the story. I'm excited for it because then I can begin it's sequel!**

**On a happier note: I got a job! Yay! I just went in for an interview and they hired me no the spot...the manager said that I was really friendly and had a great smile and that she liked me...and then another mananger said that I was sweet and a good people person...so that was cool!**

**Anyways…leave a review please! (Especially you people who read and don't review…shame on you! What's a poor girl to do…)**

**Adios!**


	13. Another One Bites the Dust

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

**Thanks for all of the reviews! **

* * *

**Chapter Thirteen: Another One Bites the Dust**

Kabuto glared. _Damn, the Hyuuga heiress has been training since I last saw her. I've got to get rid of her…fast! But how? _Kabuto grinned after realizing something. _The Byakugan has one weakness…it's blind spot. _

Hinata was panting. She stood in her stance, with her knees bent and one arm outstretched and the other bent behind her. She saw Kabuto grin, and a prickle of fear ran down her spine. She quickly brushed it away, for she had to protect someone very special to her.

She rushed forward, aiming for his heart. She was surprised when she actually hit the mark, as Kabuto had not even tried to block her. She was even more surprised when Kabuto grabbed her outstretched wrist, and then a fiery hot pain in her abdomen.

"Kuh!" Hinata looked down as blood spewed out of her mouth. Her violet eyes widened in shock as she saw a kunai sticking out of her stomach.

"Hinata!" Naruto screamed. He was about to rush forward, but Sai held him back. Naruto turned around to punch Sai, but Sai shook his head. "Let her finish it." Naruto glared, but nodded in acknowledgement.

Pain interrupted her initial shock, and she hit Kabuto in his heart with her free hand. The blow should have killed him, but it didn't. It did, however, make time for Hinata to quickly leap back.

She pulled out the kunai and put a hand to her wound. It was bleeding profusely, but it made Hinata all the more determined to beat him.

Kabuto coughed up blood. He was panting hard. _Damn the Hyuuga heiress! _He hadn't felt this tired since he fought Tsunade and Shizune almost three years ago.

He heard a scream and looked over to find Sakura dangling in the air, suspended by Orochimaru's tongue. He shook his head. _Big mistake_. _Even I knew better than to directly attack Sakura while Sasuke is around._

He had to quickly whip his head around to catch Hinata's attack. He jumped and did a back flip to avoid a fatal hit. Well, for someone else it would've been fatal, but to Kabuto it would only have hindered him for a little while.

Hinata stood, panting, blood dripping from her mouth and torso wound. She fell to her knees, coughing up blood. Instead of finishing her off, Kabuto took the brief hiatus to see how Sasuke was faring against Orochimaru.

He was just in time to see Sasuke use his chakra blade to go through Orochimaru's hand. _Damn! I've got to help him!_ Kabuto took a step in Orochimaru's direction, but as his foot landed on the ground, a kunai was imbedded to the ground, a mere centimeter away from his foot. Kabuto glanced in the direction it came from.

Naruto stood there, glaring. "You're not going anywhere."

Kabuto sighed. "Very well, then. It looks like Orochimaru's on his own."

Naruto smirked. "He's a dead man, then."

Kabuto smirked as well. "Oh, you think so?"

"I know so. Sasuke-"

"Learned everything from Orochimaru. There's no way a second-rate Uchiha could beat a legendary Sannin."

Naruto's smirk faded away. "I'd watch that mouth of yours, Kabuto."

"Oh? You don't like the truth? Just wait until you find out what I plan to do with your pink-haired friend over there."

"Leave her out of this!" Naruto growled.

Kabuto pushed his glasses. "Why do you think we kidnapped her in the first place? I wanted to see what made her…tick."

Naruto took a step forward, but was restrained by Sai. "He's not worth it, Naruto. Besides, I think Hinata needs you now."

Naruto glanced at Hinata, who was by now on all fours, coughing up blood.

Naruto shook off Sai and ran over to Hinata. He helped her up, and she leaned against him as her weak knees barely held her up.

"T-thank you, Naruto."

"Shh. You're hurt. You'd better have Sakura heal that."

Hinata nodded, tinges of pink in her cheeks at being so near Naruto.

Kabuto frowned. "What is the Hyuuga heiress to you, Naruto?"

"What is it to you?"

Kabuto smirked. "Leverage."

Before Naruto could blink Kabuto was in front of him, knocking him back into a tree. He grabbed Hinata by her hair and yanked her back, a kunai to her throat.

"Well, well," Kabuto said. "It looks like we're back where we started."

Naruto swore under his breath. Hinata looked about ready to faint. Sai was about to start drawing, but Kabuto threw a kunai at him, distracting him.

As Hinata staggered, Naruto did his Kage Bunshin (Shadow Clone) Jutsu and ran forward to finish off Kabuto.

Kabuto easily dodged him and took out the clones. Kabuto headed for Hinata.

"Hinata!" Naruto yelled, but he was too far away to do anything. As if in slow motion he turned around and saw Hinata, shakily putting her hands up in a defensive position. Blood was continuously dripping from her mouth and wound. Her perfect vision grew hazy as she felt the realm of unconsciousness take over her.

Her eyes began to close as she saw Kabuto running towards her, the kunai raised to deliver the killing blow. Her eyes, feeling like they weighed a ton, closed, and she waited for the burning pain.

But it never came. Instead, she felt a warm liquid splashed upon her. "Kuh!"

She opened her eyes slowly, a frown upon her porcelain face. She gasped.

"S-Sakura?"

"Sakura!" Three male voices yelled at once.

Sakura coughed up blood as the deadly kunai that was meant for Hinata was now embedded in her shoulder.

Sasuke appeared behind Kabuto, a kunai to the back of his neck. He was about to kill Kabuto when Kabuto spoke.

"Do you really want to do that, Sasuke?" asked Kabuto, as he twisted the kunai in Sakura's stomach, making her whimper.

Sasuke's Sharingan eyes narrowed dangerously. "Don't tempt me, bastard. I'll do it."

Kabuto smirked. "Would killing me give you more satisfaction than seeing this girl alive?"

"Hn. Maybe it would."

Sakura coughed up blood as tears formed in her eyes. She told herself that Sasuke was just acting like he didn't care, but there was always this part of her that would always question him. Old wounds took the longest to heal.

Naruto appeared beside Kabuto, and Sai on the other side of him.

"Give it up, Kabuto. Orochimaru's dead. You're done for."

Kabuto smirked. "You think so, eh?"

Naruto was not smiling. "I know so."

Sai spoke up. "If you kill Sakura, you'll be dead in an instant."

"Maybe so. But killing me wouldn't bring her back."

Naruto moved closer to Kabuto. "Why would you kill her when you said that you still had need of her?"

Kabuto gave a little shrug. "Plans change."

"Enough!" They all looked at Sakura. She reached down and grasped the kunai handle and Kabuto's hand.

"What are you doing?" Kabuto demanded.

Sakura managed to turn the corners of her mouth up. "Watch and see."

He felt his hand growing warm, and then it began to burn. "What the hell are you doing?!"

He began to see green chakra emitting from her hands. He tried to tug out of her grip, but it remained firm, and the kunai against the back of his neck pressed even harder, breaking the skin, which almost immediately healed.

"You may be invincible, Kabuto. But you're not immortal," Sakura whispered. She then sent her chakra through her hand and into his body, into his chakra system. It was the equivalent of sending bolts of lightning through one's system, like an electric current. Kabuto screamed.

It was like his body was exploding from the inside. His insides felt like they were on fire. Sakura kept pumping chakra into him. _Just a little more,_ she thought. _Just a little more_.

"Stop!" Kabuto screamed. The chakra was emitting a light green, almost white, light. It was so blinding that Sasuke, Naruto, and Sai all jumped back, and held an arm to shade their eyes.

Sakura gritted her teeth against the pain. She had to concentrate. If she let one ounce of chakra go astray, it would be deadly for her as well.

Hinata fell on her knees behind Sakura, covering her eyes as well.

Naruto saw this, and anticipated the moment when time seemed to slow, and the final blow would come.

Sasuke, too sensed it. He looked at Sakura. She looked like an avenging angel, her halo of pink hair flowing all around her, and her pale skin against bright light around her. She looked ravishing, yet somehow intangible. She mouthed something to him, right before a blast knocked him backwards.

Hinata braced herself for it, but opened her eyes when she saw warm arms envelop her, and carry her to safety. A shock of bright yellow hair and cerulean eyes looked down at her.

"Naruto?" and then they were flying through the air, and Hinata's world went dark.

Sasuke managed to stay conscious, though he seemed to be the only one. Sai lay a few feet from him, banged up and unconscious, but otherwise unharmed.

He staggered over to Sakura, who was on her knees beside a barely recognizable Kabuto.

She looked up at him and managed a small smile. "Well, it looks like he won't be bothering us anymore."

Sasuke said nothing, but knelt down next to her and gently gathered her in his arms. Sakura's eyes widened. She cried out when nudged the kunai that was still lodged in her stomach.

Sasuke immediately let go. Sakura felt bereft of his warmth already. She set to work pulling the kunai out of her, and started to heal herself when she remembered Hinata's wounds. She healed enough of her wound so that she could function properly.

As she stood up, Sasuke grabbed her arm. "Sakura…"

"Yes?"

"I…"

Sakura raised an eyebrow. "Yes?"

Sasuke swallowed, his throat dry. He gathered her gently in his embrace once again. "I'm glad you're alright," he whispered against her hair.

Sakura breathed in his scent. "I'm happy you're okay, too, Sasuke. You scared me back there."

"You…worried me too." Sasuke faltered. He didn't understand all of these emotions running through him. They had been buried and suppressed for so long that he wasn't sure if he could ever feel them again. Sakura was the key to unlocking them, he just had to provide her with the lock.

"Sasuke," she whispered.

"Hm?"

"I have to go and heal Hinata now."

Reluctantly he let her go, and then turned around assumed his cold disposition once more.

* * *

**Sorry for the lateness of the chapter...I still got it in by Friday...and I apologize for the shortness of the chapter. I'm still trying to organize my thoughts on how to end this.**

**Please review ! (I almost said read and review...but that wouldn't make sense because if you're reading this than you've already read the chapter...heehee) **


	14. Owner of a Lonely Heart

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

**Thanks for all of the positive feedback everybody who reviewed!**

* * *

**Chapter Fourteen: Owner of a Lonely Heart**

Sakura used the majority of her chakra for healing Hinata. Sasuke stood by her the whole time, saying nothing, with his usual stoic face.

Naruto, for once, was quiet. His expression was thoughtful, yet brooding. Sai sat against a tree, drawing on his pad of paper.

Hinata didn't flinch while Sakura was healing her. The pain must have been great, but she took and accepted it with the dignity that came with being an heiress and a Hyuuga. Her violet-gray eyes kept straying to a certain blond ninja with cerulean eyes. She looked like she wanted to say something, so after she was done healing her Sakura let them have privacy.

Sasuke followed her, unbidden. When they were far enough away not to be heard, Sasuke stopped.

"Sakura."

Sakura stopped too, and turned around. She felt like something bad was going to happen. The feeling of dread quickly spread when she heard Sasuke's next words.

"I don't love you."

Sakura frowned. "I know. I told you that I would wait until-"

Sasuke's voice was cold and harsh. "No, you aren't hearing me. I don't love you. Nor will I _ever_."

Sakura flinched. "What…what are saying?"

"I'm saying that you're annoying. You nearly compromised the fight between me and Orochimaru, and then Hinata and Kabuto."

Sakura frowned. "But I defeated-"

"Sakura. Just keep quiet for five seconds. Are you capable of that?"

Sakura bit her lip, but said nothing, and nodded.

"Good. Now, as I was saying, stop chasing after me with your childhood fantasy of us loving each other. This is the real world, and it's never going to happen."

It seemed as if the light went out in Sakura's emerald-green eyes. But then another light lit in her eyes, this one much more dangerous. "Sasuke…you're lying."

"What?"

Sakura stood her ground. Tears shimmered in her eyes, but she didn't care anymore. It was high time he heard this.

"Sasuke, get off your high-horse! Stop trying to ruin every good thing that's ever happened to you! You say that you don't like being alone, yet you make yourself alone." Sakura stopped yelling and, quietly fuming, said, "I said that I would love you no matter what, and that I'd save you. Well," Sakura said, poking him, "I've got news for you. Nothing you say or do can ever make me hate you, Sasuke. I would've thought that a _genius_ such as you would know that."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "Sakura, why won't you accept that I won't ever love you?"

Sakura shrugged her shoulders. "Because I've spent the last seven years of my life wanting your love. I've grown accustomed to the fact that you'll never love me back. I've prepared for it, and I've accepted that no matter what I'll always love you. It's enough that you care enough about me to stand up for me and save me. I know you don't want to see me hurt, so that's a start."

Sasuke sighed. "Sakura, you are a pain in my ass."

Sakura grinned. "I know."

"That wasn't a compliment."

"I know."

"Than why did you take it as such?"

"Because you wouldn't try to hurt me on purpose. If I distinctly remember, you said that you care about me after you very passionately and thoroughly kissed me." Sakura raised an eyebrow. She was no timid or shy girl anymore. "What have you to say to that?"

Sasuke growled as he grabbed her arms and lowered his lips to hers in a rough, though very passionate, kiss. Sakura enjoyed every minute of it. She eagerly opened her mouth to his exploring tongue and ran her fingers through his dark, soft hair. Sasuke's hand went to the back of her neck as he deepened the kiss even more. Sakura moaned as pleasure coursed through her entire body.

Sasuke broke the kiss and started kissing his way down her neck.

"Hey, knock it off you two! We should get going!"

Naruto's voice broke the moment between Sasuke and Sakura. Sasuke swore, calling Naruto a very foul name, and Sakura groaned.

Sasuke rested his forehead against Sakura's as they tried to control their ragged breathing. After a few moments, Sakura asked, "Sasuke, why do you try so hard to push me away?"

Sasuke winced. It took him a few moments to answer. "Sakura…I'm afraid that I'll hurt you."

Sakura gently explored his face with her soft touch. "Sasuke…don't you understand that you'll hurt me worse if you push me away than you ever could if you let me in?"

"Hn. Either way, you'll get hurt."

"You don't know that. I'm willing to take that risk."

"What if I'm not willing to gamble-"

"Sasuke, I'd rather experience Mangekyou Sharingan a thousand times than have my heart broken again. Physical pain is fleeting; emotional pain lasts forever."

At the mention of the Mangekyou Sharingan, Sasuke scowled. "I'll kill him for what he did to you."

Sakura smiled gently. "You were already going to kill him."

"Hai. But now I'm going to make it slow and as painful as possible. He's going to wish he'd never been born when I'm through with him." Sasuke had grown colder and colder. Sakura shuddered despite the heat of the day and the warmth radiating from Sasuke. She was sorry that she mentioned the Mangekyou Sharingan now. She put a finger to Sasuke's lips to silence him.

"Sasuke, sometimes you talk too much." Before he could retort, Sakura raised herself to her tiptoes and touched her lips to his, softly at first, and then applied more pressure. This time, it was Sakura who dominated the kiss. She explored his mouth, and tasted him.

Sakura wrapped her arms around his neck and pressed herself against him. Sasuke moaned, and Sakura saw stars when Sasuke's hands started roaming. Sasuke's hand went under Sakura's shirt to touch her stomach. Her muscles contracted at the touch, and goosebumps arose on her skin. His callused fingers began tracing patters on her back. Suddenly Sakura wanted to touch Sasuke as well. Her hands touched his chest, which was still bare because of the loose shirt he wore. She could feel Sasuke jerk at the contact with his flesh.

Sasuke broke the kiss when he felt Sakura touching him, before things would go too far. They were both breathing hard, and Sakura was shaking.

"Sasuke, that was-"

"Shh. Just enjoy the moment."

Sakura nodded against his forehead. After she regained her footing, and would be able to walk without her knees giving out on her, she stepped out of Sasuke's warm embrace.

"We've got to get back."

Sasuke nodded. They walked back to the others, who were pretending to be oblivious to everything they had just witnessed. Sakura's cheeks were bright pink, but they didn't know if it was from embarrassment or from…something else.

"Hinata, how are you feeling?" Sakura asked, the medic taking over.

"F-fine. Thank you for healing me, Sakura." Hinata looked down at the ground, shuffling the dirt with her feet.

Sakura smiled. "You're welcome, Hinata. I'm just glad that you weren't hurt. I'm pretty sure everyone else was too, right Naruto?" she asked slyly.

Naruto smiled brightly. "Yep!" He walked up and put his arm around Hinata. "Don't know what I'd do without her!"

Hinata blushed like crazy, and felt very faint with Naruto so near her. Naruto seemed oblivious to it all, though, and just hugged her closer. To which Hinata fainted. Naruto didn't notice anything was wrong until he was holding thin air.

"What the- Hinata? Hinata!" He knelt down and gently shook her, yelling her name.

Sakura shook her head. "Naruto, you idiot!"

Naruto looked confused. "I didn't do anything!"

Sasuke shook his head. "Naruto, you idiot."

"But I didn't do anything!"

Naruto looked to Sai for help, but Sai shook his head. "Don't look at me. I've only been dealing with feelings for a couple of weeks. Just smile!"

Naruto glared at him, but his attention focused on Hinata, who was stirring. She slowly opened her eyes, only to see Naruto inches away from her face. She gasped and sat up quickly, knocking their heads together.

Naruto attempted to pull away, but was yanked back by a tug on his neck. He promptly landed square on Hinata, who was so red she looked like a tomato.

"Ow! Sorry, Hinata!"

Hinata could not even summon up enough words for an "okay." Instead, she about near fainted again with Naruto on top of her.

Sakura grinned. "Well, we should get going, guys!" With that, she motioned for Sasuke and Sai to follow her as she quickly took off down the road. They quickly did just that, Sai waving to Naruto with a silly grin on his face.

Naruto had a look of horror. "Hey, wait guys! Damn!" Naruto attempted to get up again, but was yanked onto Hinata again.

"Oof!"

"Sorry Hinata!" Naruto looked down to see the source of the problem. The necklace that Tsunade had given him had gotten caught in the mesh in Hinata's shirt.

Naruto grinned to cover his embarrassment. "What are the chances of that?"

Hinata gulped. Naruto's face was so close to hers. She felt faint again, but forced herself to stay conscious. It wouldn't do for her to faint _twice_ in front of Naruto.

Hinata reached out to try and help untangle the necklace, but Naruto went for it at the same time. They ended up grasping each other's hands. Hinata turned even redder.

Naruto looked at her and frowned. "Hinata, are you okay? You look like you might have a fever." Naruto used his other hand to touch Hinata's forehead.

Hinata swallowed the lump in her incredibly dry throat. "N-Naruto…"

Hinata quickly let go of his hand and avoided his gaze.

"Hinata…"

Hinata's violet-grey eyes roved everywhere until they rested on Naruto's sky blue ones. He had a very serious look on his face as he leaned closer to Hinata.

Hinata closed her eyes. _Is he…is Naruto going to…kiss me? _She waited for Naruto's lips to descend upon hers, but the only thing she felt was a feather-light touch on her cheek. Her eyelids lifted slowly, and then blinked rapidly when she saw Naruto grinning. Hinata frowned.

"Naruto-"

Naruto grinned even wider and held up a finger. "Got it!"

"Got what?" Hinata whispered.

"An eyelash!"

"W-what?"

"You had an eyelash on your cheek. A very long and pretty one, I might add. I thought I'd get it for you!" Naruto looked so proud of himself that Hinata didn't have the heart to be disappointed in him. He was her Naruto, after all.

Hinata managed a smile. "Th-thank you, Naruto."

Naruto stopped smiling when he heard the tone of her voice. "Are you sure you're not sick, Hinata?" he asked, his face full of a gentle concern.

Hinata gave a small shake of her head. "No, I'm fine."

Naruto seemed to believe her. He went to work on his tangled necklace and actually managed to get it undone without harming anyone or anything. He was rather proud of himself as he stood up. He offered a hand to Hinata, and she shyly took it and thanked him as he helped her up.

The sun was setting as they stood there in silence for a few moments. Naruto had a serious expression on his face as he stood gazing at the sunset.

Hinata thought that he would rather be alone and turned to leave, but was stopped by Naruto.

"Hinata?"

"Yes, Naruto?"

"Do you believe in fate?"

Hinata thought for a moment. "I believe that you make your own destiny."

Naruto gave a small smile. "So do I."

After a few more moments of silence, Hinata turned to leave again, but was once again stopped by Naruto.

"Hinata, do you believe in love?"

"Of course. It is what drives us to do the things we do."

"Do you think it's possible to have loved someone without knowing it?"

Hinata's cheeks turned pink. "I…I don't know."

Naruto turned his gaze to her. She had to look up at him, as he had grown significantly taller than her over the last two and a half years.

"Why don't you know?" Naruto asked softly.

Hinata's cheeks turned an even darker shade of red. "B-because…"

"Because why?"

Hinata's grey orbs looked into his ocean-blue ones. "Because, I've known that I've love a special person for a long time now."

"When did you realize that you loved them?"

Hinata didn't know why Naruto asked these questions, especially to her, or why it had suddenly grown so hot.

She swallowed nervously. "I don't know, really. It just kind of…happened. I realized that I cared for…them…and it just grew into love."

Naruto nodded his head in understanding. He looked pensive.

"Naruto?"

"Do you believe in love?"

Naruto looked away, towards the darkening sky. "I thought I loved Sakura, but now I'm not so sure. I mean, I care about her, but more in a sisterly fashion than in the…girlfriend…fashion."

Hinata stood a little straighter. "Oh?"

"Do you believe that you could love someone without knowing it?" Hinata asked quietly, hope giving her a bold side that surfaced only rarely.

"Yes."

"How do you know?" Hinata asked breathlessly. She didn't realize how close they'd moved until now.

"You're proof of it."

Hinata's stomach dropped, and she couldn't summon enough moisture to swallow. She felt dizzy, and felt like she was going to faint.

"What-what are you saying?"

Naruto scratched the back of his head. "Well…I've got to know for awhile now. I realized during those two and a half years how much I missed my home…and the people in it."

Hinata nodded eagerly, silently asking him to continue.

"I…thought about everyone who meant something to me…_everyone_."

Naruto took Hinata's hand in his own. He rubbed his thumb gently over Hinata's delicate fingers. "It wasn't until I saw you get hurt that I realized how much you mean to me."

Hinata could not have gotten any redder than at that moment. Naruto grinned.

"You know, you're really cute when you blush like that."

Apparently it was possible for her to get redder. Before Hinata could faint, Naruto quickly asked, "Hinata…is there any possible chance that you could care for me as much as I care for you?"

"Naruto…" Hinata swallowed and took a deep breath to calm her nerves. "I've…l-lo-" Hinata's breathing was short and uneven. Naruto squeezed her hand, urging her to go on.

Hinata closed her eyes and breathed in. This time her voice and breathing was clear. "I love you, Naruto."

Naruto bent his head down and gently kissed Hinata. She was so surprised that she didn't even close her eyes. The kiss was over before it had barely begun, but Naruto wasn't finished speaking.

"Hinata…there's something you should know."

Hinata's heart raced even faster. That didn't sound good…

"You'd better sit down." Naruto led her over to a tree and they both sat down.

Hinata had been scared before, but the possibility of Naruto rejecting her…she didn't know if she could survive a blow like that.

"Before we start a relationship, there's something you should know about me." Naruto grasped Hinata's hand, needing the her warmth and support.

"Naruto, if you don't want to tell me-"

"No, you need to hear this before you decide that you really love me."

Hinata nodded, and squeezed Naruto's hand, letting him know without words that there was nothing that could make her not love him.

"Do you remember how the Fourth Hokage died? He sealed the fox-demon Kyuubi inside a baby, and in doing so sacrificed his own life."

Hinata nodded, having heard the tale before. "Well, what you don't know is who that baby was."

Hinata looked curious, yet eager to learn more information on the subject. She always wondered what had happened to the child.

"That baby was me. I have the Kyuubi inside of me."

Hinata looked shocked, and released Naruto's hand. Naruto's shoulders were slumped, and his head was down.

It took a few moments for Hinata to get over the shock, but she quickly got over her stupor. She leaned forward and gently lifted Naruto's head with a finger.

"Naruto…everything you said just makes me love you even more."

Naruto looked incredulous. "How?"

"Everything makes sense now. It must have been so hard on you, with the village shunning you. Your heart must have been so…lonely. But you didn't turn cold, and hard. Instead you found a way to cope with it, and it made me admire you for being so brave because I could never be as brave as you are. Now that I know why they shunned you, I admire you even more because survived something like that. Not only that, you-" Hinata was silenced by Naruto's mouth on hers.

Hinata's eyes widened, and then closed. Naruto gently deepened the kiss, but was careful to move slowly so as not to scare Hinata.

For once, Naruto was grateful to Ero-Sannin for all those lessons of his.

They sat there until it grew dark and cold, learning new things about each other and talking, though the better part of it was spent in nonverbal communication of the most pleasurable kind.

Let's just say it was a very long time until Naruto and Hinata caught up to Sasuke, Sakura, and Sai.

* * *

**Well, that was my first attempt at kissing scenes (other than chapter nine). I've never written one before so I hope it wasn't disappointing. **

**Okay, this chapter was mostly fluff, for those who have been asking for it. I realize that the characters were OOC a lot in this chapter, but they kind of have to be in order to participate in…teenage…activities. **

**Please review and let me know if I did a good job or not! And thank you for all of the reviews so far…they keep me going!**

**PS. I gave you guys this chapter early, so thank me by reviewing! **


	15. Rings and Revelations

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto.**

**I'd just like to clarify something: Naruto and Hinata did NOT sleep together or do anything of that kind (just kissing). They're a little young (I realize that fifteen-year-olds do the dirty deed, but in my story they don't). Neither did Sasuke and Sakura, kay? Just kissing…for now. : )**

**Thanks for all of the reviews! Whew, it's been a hectic week for me. I was stuck in Washington because my aunt had to go in for emergency surgery to get her appendix out, and then the next day the brakes went out in my dad's truck…which cost a butt load of money to fix. And then my grandma fell and broke her hip, and then my uncle had a heart attack…so I've been spending just about all week in the hospital. Man, when it rains, it pours in my family. **

**(Sorry for the ranting up there. I'll go on with the story now)**

* * *

**Chapter Fifteen: Rings and Revelations**

That night Sakura tossed and turned on her bedroll. She dreamt of her days as a captive of Akatsuki. The memories, long held at bay by her rational mind, were beginning to resurface. She awoke in a cold sweat, panting.

She hadn't told Sasuke everything.

* * *

During breakfast the next morning the subject of how to track Akatsuki came up. They decided to travel back to the bunkers where Sakura had been held and start from there.

While picking up camp, Sakura tentatively approached Sasuke.

"Sasuke?"

"Hn?"

Sakura didn't respond, and suddenly felt extremely nervous. _Why am I nervous? It's not like I've never kissed a guy…extremely passionately…before. Oh wait! I haven't._ While Sakura was telling herself not to feel nervous, Sasuke set aside what he had been doing and sighed.

"Sakura, what is it?" he asked impatiently.

Sakura shook herself from her conversation within her mind and cleared her throat.

"Huh? Oh, sorry, Sasuke. It's just…I wanted to ask you something."

Sasuke raised an eyebrow. "Well?"

Sakura stepped closer to him and looked up into his eyes, and took a deep breath. "Sasuke…I wanted to talk to you about Itachi."

Sasuke's expression instantly became hard, and his look cold. "No." Sasuke turned around and started to walk away.

Sakura expected the scowl to crease his face, but it still hurt nonetheless. "Sasuke, please. I really need to talk to you about…what he did to me."

Sasuke froze. So did everyone else who had been pretending not to listen. They were all looking at Sakura as if she were an alien.

"What are you talking about, Sakura?" asked the ever-hyperactive Naruto. He forced a smile on his lips. "I thought you already talked about it with Sasuke? Why do you want to drag it all up now? I mean-" he was interrupted by a tug on his sleeve. He looked down at Hinata. She shook her head slowly, silently telling him to stop. Naruto frowned, but remained quiet.

Sakura swallowed. "I just wanted to warn everyone before…they come."

Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "Before who comes?

Sakura avoided his eyes and looked at the ground, and then up at the cloudy sky. "Akatsuki."

Sai entered the conversation, his smile noticeably absent. "Why would they come back?"

Sakura swallowed again. "I…took something."

Hinata had a worried look on her face, and Naruto's face looked red, probably from holding his breath so as not to speak out.

Sai's face resembled Sasuke's: impassive.

However, Sasuke's voice was anything but emotionless. "Just tell us what you did, Sakura. I'm sick of playing your little question-and-answer games."

Sakura flinched. She reached into her kunai pouch and withdrew with something in her fist. She held her fist out in front of her and everyone gathered round. Sakura opened her fist, so that her palm was flat.

Hinata gasped.

Naruto said, "Eh?" and scratched his head.

Sai smiled.

Sasuke's frowned.

It was a ring. A _ruby_ ring.

After a few moments realization dawned on them.

Sasuke closed his eyes and clenched his jaw. "Sakura."

"Yes?" she whispered.

"Tell me you did not take Itachi's Akatsuki's ring."

"I did not take Itachi's Akatsuki's ring."

"Well then what is it?"

"Itachi's Akatsuki's ring."

Sasuke seethed with anger. "You just said it wasn't."

Sakura managed a small attempt at humor. She gave a small smile and said, "That's because you told me to." Her smile instantly disappeared when Sasuke opened his eyes again. He looked like he wanted to throttle her. But instead of yelling, he calmly asked, "Why did you take it?"

Sakura shrugged. "It seemed like a good idea at the time. Maybe I could've used it as leverage. I didn't think I was going to be rescued at the time, so I tried to think of alternate plans." Seeing Sasuke's death glare made Sakura throw her hands in the air in frustration, the ring securely held in her fist. "I don't know, Sasuke! I thought it might weaken him or something."

"How did you take it?" Sai asked.

Sakura bit her lip, looking sheepish. "I don't know."

"What do you mean, you don't know?" Sasuke snapped, irritation pouring from him.

"I…I can't remember."

"What do you mean, you can't remember?" Sasuke repeated.

"What are you, a parrot?" retorted Sakura. Sasuke narrowed his eyes, but didn't say anything. "That time is still a bit hazy. I had a dream about it last night. And when I woke up and looked in my kunai pouch, there was the ring."

"Whoa…" said Naruto.

Sasuke turned around and stalked off into the thick trees. Sakura was about to call after him when she remembered what happened last time. Her cheeks turned bright pink and she bit her lip. The naughty part of her wanted to follow him and to hell with the consequences. But the rational side of her won over. This was neither the time nor the place for such things.

After a few moments Naruto broke the silence. "Why do you think the rings are so important?" he asked in a whisper.

Sakura shrugged her shoulders. "I honestly don't know. Tsunade let me read the profiles on everyone we have classified under Akatsuki after I defeated Sasori, but we don't have anything on the rings." She gave a wry smile. "The only people we could've asked were pulverized by us."

Sai smiled. "Good one. I read in a book once that that is an example of 'irony'. I believe, in this case, I am supposed to laugh?" The last statement was more of a question, and he tilted his head slightly, waiting for a response.

Sakura, quite used to Sai's behavior by now, nodded and said, "Sure."

Sai chuckled quietly, and then sobered quickly when he realized that no one else was.

No one got angry with him, for Sai was new to the whole "emotions" thing. He deserved a break after all those years of not feeling _anything._

Sakura put the ring back inside her pouch after examining it for a few more moments. It was a blood-red ruby set in a simple band of silver. On the ruby was the symbol _Suzaku_, which represented the Vermilion bird, a noble and graceful creature. For the life of her Sakura couldn't fathom why it would be in the hands of a monster like Itachi.

The group dispersed to finish packing up camp. When they were done, Sakura went in search of Sasuke, as he had not yet returned.

Sakura called his name, but didn't want to rouse too much noise for fear of enemies finding them. She quickly became frustrated with him, and contemplated punching a nearby tree. But she didn't feel like destroying a tree just to vent her frustration. She'd save _that_ for when she found Sasuke.

* * *

Sasuke sat on the rock by the pond, watching the sun rise in the sky. His mind was racing with suppressed emotion, but the thing that disgusted him the most was his fear. Not fear for himself, but for someone else.

When Sasuke saw Sakura had Itachi's ring, one thing entered his mind: death. Itachi would stop at nothing to reclaim the ring that meant so much to him, and Sakura was only an obstacle that needed to be removed. Sakura's life meant nothing to Itachi. But it meant everything to Sasuke.

He wasn't sure if this was love, as he hadn't loved anyone since the Uchiha massacre all those years ago. He knew that he didn't want to see her emerald eyes full of pain ever again. He wasn't sure if he could willingly die for her, though. He hadn't yet accomplished his goal of killing Itachi. Or repopulating his clan. If he died, there would be no more Uchiha in the world.

He'd spent most of his life trying to remain cold and distant from people that he wasn't sure if he could ever return to the little boy he used to be before his family was so cruelly taken away from him.

Sasuke scowled. He was weak. No matter how hard he tried to break the bonds between Team 7, he couldn't. They just wouldn't give up on him, and for some reason it made his heart hurt to know that he had caused them pain and anguish. He wished that they hated him, because then he could hate them too. But no. The idiots still cared about him. That's all he needed. More things to tie him down and keep him from reaching his goal.

He smirked when he thought of Naruto. _Idiot_. _Loudmouth. Brave. Loyal. Friend. Brother._ Those six words could be used to summon up Naruto. In Naruto, he had found another family. Another brother. One that wouldn't betray him. One that he could count on. Of course, he had no intention of Naruto becoming stronger than him, but he guessed that it would be okay if they were equals.

He shook his head slightly when he thought of Kakashi, his sensei and substitute older brother. He couldn't say that he was a father-figure to him, but Kakashi was definitely a role model to him. In a lot of ways, Sasuke resembled Kakashi. Not in his physical appearance, but in his character. Sasuke had heard tales of Kakashi as a child, and how he was considered a genius. He remembered the night when Kakashi had told him of how his comrade had died, and how he came to possess the Sharingan. At the time, Sasuke couldn't have cared less about comrades. To him, the mission would always come first. But now that he was having these revelations about how much he actually cared about his teammates, he wasn't so sure that he would abandon them again.

His thoughts turned to Sakura. His heart beat faster when he thought of just how much their relationship and changed over the years. When they first became teammates, he wouldn't have given her the time of day. He ignored her attentions, and called her annoying. He treated her like she treated Naruto, when Naruto had a crush on her. Sasuke regretted that, but then again she was a little obsessed and a tad bit crazy.

Sasuke couldn't pinpoint the turning point in their relationship. He remembered their first real mission, when they encountered assassins on their way to the Country of Waves. Kakashi had left the two shinobi to them. Naruto froze, and Sasuke had smirked at the blond boy, and called him a scaredy-cat. But there was more. They had left Tazuna open to attack. Sakura stepped in front of him, ready to protect Tazuna, even though her death was imminent against the assassin. Sasuke and seen him reach for Sakura, prepared to strike her down. His heart had stopped, but his body reacted. He could see the fear in her face, and he had placed himself in front of her, protecting her with his own body. To this day he couldn't recall why he had done it. He told himself then that he was protecting the mission, Tazuna, but now he wasn't so sure.

And of course, there was when he obtained the curse seal from Orochimaru. He had awoken from his feverish state to see Sakura bruised and beaten, her beautiful pink locks sheared. He had reacted instantly, and demanded to see her attacker. He wanted to kill him. Kill him for hurting her, and touching her. Of course, at the time, he attributed his need for retribution to the curse seal. He just wanted to test it out on someone, and who better than an enemy shinobi? Now, he knew what he had really felt then.

But his heart wasn't ready to accept such feelings. That's why he'd left Konoha. He was scared of the feelings that were surfacing. So he did everything in his power to squash them, even going so far as to attempt to kill Naruto. He couldn't kill Sakura, though. He'd had the chance. That night he had left, he could have snapped her thin neck instead of knocking her out. He told himself then that he couldn't kill her because then he would be wanted for murder, and Konoha would never stop hunting him down. So he just left her there, tears still falling down her pale cheeks. That was his way of breaking bonds.

But it hadn't worked. Sakura had managed to find the only crack in the hard wall around his heart, and had wormed her way in. Sasuke still couldn't believe it.

The sound of someone approaching interrupted his musings. Without turning around her knew who it was.

"What do you want, Sakura?" he asked, not even bothering to look at her.

She approached him and sat down next to him on the boulder. She looked at him, and then scooted closer and leaned against him, laying her head on his shoulder. He made no attempt to move away, and did not even stiffen his body.

"Sasuke…I don't know what the future holds."

Sasuke didn't like the way that she sounded when she said that.

Sakura didn't expect a reply, but she still paused in case he wanted to say something. Not surprisingly, he didn't.

"Sasuke…what I'm trying to say is…is…." Sakura took a deep breath and began again.

"Sasuke, if I die, I want you to know something."

Sasuke stiffened when she said that. He shook her off and scowled. "Stop talking like that you want me to feel sorry for you."

Sakura expected something like that, but it still hurt. She reached up and cupped Sasuke's chin, turning his face to look at her. She gently kissed him, to which he responded most eagerly. Before Sasuke could deepen the kiss, Sakura pulled back.

"I love you."

Sasuke remained expressionless.

"Sasuke, I wanted you to know that in case something happens to either of us. That way, if I die, I could die without any regrets at having not said everything in my heart."

"Sakura-"

"No, let me finish, Sasuke. I need to tell you this. I think you need to hear it as well."

Sasuke acquiesced and remained silent.

"Sasuke, ever since I was a little girl I took a liking to you. At first, it was just a silly schoolgirl crush. It wasn't until I got to know the real you that I started falling in love with you. I don't know when it happened, or even why, but I do know that I love you, and I would do anything for you. I have to admit, though, that you broke my heart when you left on that bench that night. Those two and half years apart really wore on me. I hate to admit it, but I started giving up on you. I had a lot of friends, and so I tried to move on. Lee was always there for me, and made me feel wanted. Naruto would go out on a date with me in an instant, as long as we split the costs. So I tried to fill the gap that you made in my heart when you left."

Sakura clasped his large, callused hand in hers. "But nothing could fill the gap. You were the one that made it, and you are the only one that can fill it in again." She looked into his eyes. "You did that, Sasuke. My heart is finally full again, thanks to you."

She kissed him again, and allowed this kiss to go on longer. This time it was Sasuke who broke the kiss.

"Damnit, Sakura! Why couldn't you just hate me? Then I wouldn't feel so damn confused!"

Sakura grinned. "I always did get on your nerves, didn't I?" She tilted her head up. "Just part of my charm."

Sasuke swooped down and kissed her again, this time more heatedly. As their tongues met, Sasuke felt his blood heat, and the surge of desire that he felt scared the hell out of him. He'd been met with advances from women before, but he'd rejected them, not interested. He hadn't realized that kissing could be so…fun. Maybe he would've done it sooner. But something inside told himself that it would only be "fun" with Sakura.

He broke the kiss once again before things could go too far. While they caught their breath, Sasuke and Sakura simply stared at one another. They communicated their feelings through nonverbal communication, and it wasn't until several minutes later that they finally returned to camp.

They found Naruto and Hinata leaning against a tree, holding hands. Hinata was blushing slightly, but she was getting better now that she had nothing to be shy about. Sai was sitting against a tree, doodling on his pad of paper.

"Let's go." Sasuke said curtly. The group had only taken a few steps in the desired direction when dark blurs came to stop in front of them, blocking their way.

Sakura's heart stopped.

_Akatsuki!_

* * *

**I have an issue. I'm not exactly sure if Kakashi ever told Sasuke, Sakura, or Naruto about Obito and Rin. But in my fic, he at least told Sasuke about how he obtained the Sharingan. So if anyone was confused on that, or angry, I apologize.**

**On another note I got my employee outfit today. It looks like it belongs in "Little House in the Prairie", no joke. Anyways, just thought I'd throw that little tidbit in.**

**Oh, and thank you to everyone who reads and reviews, they are much appreciated and help me not be so lazy in updating. But, as promised, here is the new chapter on Friday (well…I guess it's really late on Thursday night, but I guess with the time differences it could be Friday somewhere…so technically this is early again)! Enjoy!**

**belle2990**


	16. And Your Opponent Is

Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto nor the characters.

Thanks for all of the reviews!

Note to kattylin: No, I'm not making Itachi a part of the SasuSaku-ness…mainly because Sakura would never fall for him. She hates him, as he is the reason that Sasuke left Konoha in the first place and broke her heart. So, sorry if anyone was wanting that. I just can't stand Itachi (in my opinion he's not even that good looking) But anyways.

* * *

Chapter Sixteen: And Your Opponent Is…

Sakura's hand unconsciously went to her kunai pouch, where Itachi's ring sat.

Sasuke narrowed his eyes and immediately activated the Sharingan. He frowned. These

were the real members of Akatsuki, not body doubles.

He nodded to everyone else, signifying that they were real.

Everyone got into a defensive position. Things weren't looking too good for them. The ratio of good guys to bad guys was 1:1, under which under any normal circumstances they would look even, but these were merely Chuunins against the infamous Akatsuki.

Sakura looked at the five Akatsuki members standing in front of her. There was Deidara, the clay specialist. Next was a member that Sakura had never met before, but knew from Tsunade that this was Tobi, the newest member of Akatsuki. Next in line was another one that Sakura had only heard of, named Zetsu, and finally the next two made her blood run cold. Kisame and Itachi Uchiha.

Sasuke's hands were clenched, and Sakura could feel him building up chakra inside. You could almost see the anger emitting from Sasuke. Itachi didn't even acknowledge him.

"We're here for Kyuubi." All eyes turned towards Naruto. He frowned.

Hinata gasped. She grasped Naruto's tan hand in her own pale one. "What-what do you want with him?" she boldly asked.

Itachi spared her a glance. "Stay out of this, Hyuuga. I don't think the Hyuuga's want their heiress murdered, do they? Not to mention the secrets of the Byakugan to fall into the wrong hands…"

Naruto released her hand and stepped in front of Hinata. "You leave her out of this! I'm not going anywhere with you!"

Itachi sighed. "We can do this the easy way, or the hard way."

Before Naruto could reply, Sakura stepped in front of him. She cracked her knuckles loudly.

"Itachi Uchiha. I would kill you right now…but somebody else has already claimed that right. However, I will not hesitate to defend my friends. Naruto is going _nowhere_ with you. Nor is Hinata. And neither is this little thing…"

Sakura took out Itachi's ring. It glinted in the sunlight as Itachi narrowed his eyes.

"Kunoichi…I hope you have a death wish, because that's the only wish that you're going to granted."

Itachi rushed forward, kunai in hand. Before Sakura could defend herself, a dark blue blur moved in front of her, arms raised. _Sasuke!_

"Don't touch her again, _Itachi_." Itachi stopped in front of Sasuke. His Sharingan eyes bore into Sasuke's own red ones. After a moment Itachi looked away.

"You haven't acquired the Sharingan yet. You are of no consequence, Sasuke. I came for Kyuubi, and my ring." Itachi's focus shifted to Sakura, who slipped the ring back into her kunai pouch.

In a blur Itachi was gone, only to reappear behind Sakura. Sakura anticipated this, gathered chakra into her fist, and aimed for Itachi's heart to stop him in one stroke. Itachi's Sharingan eyes saw this in time to avoid a fatal hit, but he was forced to jump back.

Sakura attacked Itachi again, and once again Itachi was pushed back. Sakura's fist slammed into a tree, which was then broken in half, splinters flying everywhere.

Itachi eyed the tree wearily. "So…you know ninjutsu as well, Sakura?"

Sakura smirked. "Among other things. You have no idea what I'm capable of, Itachi."

Sakura practically spat out his name.

Sasuke snapped out of his trance and yelled, "Sakura, you stay out of this! This is my fight."

Itachi didn't even look at him.

* * *

The others were looking on at the battle, until Deidara spoke.

"So, you want to see my art, yeah?" he asked, only one blue eye visible behind his bangs.

Sai stepped forward. "So you think you know what art is, huh?"

Deidara grinned. "Yeah."

Sai whipped out his pad of paper and writing utensil. "Why don't we see who's art is better?"

Deidara's hands went inside of his clay pouches. "I love a challenge, yeah."

Deidara and Sai began their battle of art. Meanwhile, Naruto and Hinata were silently wondering which of the remaining Akatsuki members they would have to battle. With

Sakura and Sasuke fighting Itachi, the odds were against them, as it was three to two.

Hinata and Naruto observed the Akatsuki members. Neither of them had been informed of the Akatsuki members, save Itachi, Kisame, and Deidara. However, the one with orange swirly mask and the one with a Venus fly trap on his head were unknown to them.

Finally, the one with the mask gave a stiff bow. "If you don't mind, we'll let the lady choose her opponent."

Naruto growled. "Leave her out of this!"

Hinata frowned and tugged on Naruto's sleeve. "Naruto…I know you mean well, but I can handle myself. I haven't been sitting around these past two years…and I've been training with Neji a lot…so I think I'm ready. It's a shinobi's duty to protect my village and my comrades, is it not?"

Naruto frowned. How could he argue against such logic?

He tried anyways. "But-"

"Naruto…can you trust me to take care of myself, just as I trust you to take care of yourself?" Hinata's violet eyes bore into Naruto's ocean-blue ones.

Naruto attempted to stare her down, but lost after two seconds.

Then he smiled a small smile. "Hinata…you don't stutter anymore."

Hinata smiled as well.

Naruto puffed out his chest. "It must be the effect _I'm _having on you."

Hinata didn't have the heart to tell him that it was because of him in the first place that she was so shy, and stuttered around him. She just smiled, and hugged him tightly. Hinata realized that she had grown up a lot from the shy girl who used to faint and blush around Naruto. Hinata felt bravery and confidence stirring in her, something she only felt whenever Naruto was around.

"Be careful, Hinata."

Hinata nodded. "You too, Naruto."

The orange-masked Akatsuki member cleared his throat. "Pardon me you lovebirds, but shouldn't we get on with the fight? After all, everyone else is engaged already."

After getting no response from anyone, he continued. "Allow me to introduce myself. My name is Tobi. I'm the newest member of Akatsuki, replacing Sasori. I-"

"Let's just kill them and be done with it." The man with the Venus flytrap on his head spoke in a robot-like voice. Another voice, this one more emotional, said, "Will you just be quiet? Let the man finish his speech, and then we'll kill them."

The robot voice responded, "We should've never let Tobi replace Sasori."

"Hmmm…I think Tobi makes a better replacement than the other candidates we could've chosen. At least he's polite."

"Whatever. Let's just get this thing over with."

Naruto exchanged a confused look with Hinata. What the heck was this guy?

Just then the Venus flytrap partially opened, revealing a painted face. The entire right side was painted black, and the entire left side was white. Glowing yellow orbs functioned as the man's eyes, and he had dark green hair, almost blending in with the Venus flytrap.

Tobi sighed. "Very well, Zetsu. Impatient, as usual. I guess I'll be a gentleman and fight the lady. As the saying goes, 'ladies first.' Is that all right with you, Kisame?"

The shark man replied, "Yah. But I get to eat her when you're done. She looks mighty tasty." He grinned savagely, showing off his rows of razor-sharp jagged teeth.

Hinata spread her legs apart, and bent her knees, her arms up in her defensive position.

"Byakugan!" Veins protruded from her eyes as she scanned her opponent.

Tobi grinned, and bowed. "Shall we begin?"

Hinata didn't answer, but rather raced forward, attacking with her Gentle Fist.

Naruto didn't have time to watch over Hinata, as the man named Kisame had pulled out his gigantic sword. It crushed the ground beneath it, and unraveled to reveal sharp, rounded spikes that were designed for shaving, not slicing.

Kisame grinned. "Like Samehada? Ahh…she's a beauty, isn't she? She's even more beautiful when she's stained red!" Kisame lunged at Naruto, holding the huge sword above his head.

Naruto flipped backwards to avoid the sword, and he narrowly missed it. Kisame ran at Naruto again, but Naruto got distracted by Hinata's scream. Naruto made the mistake of trying to steal a glance in Hinata's direction, and paid for it dearly.

He felt the whoosh of the blade as it descended upon him, and Kisame grinned as he sliced it across Naruto's arm, spraying blood everywhere.

Naruto cried out and jumped back to avoid getting hurt again, and covered his wound with his other hand.

Naruto cursed. He stole a glance in Sakura's direction, knowing that he couldn't function properly with this wound.

* * *

Sakura was watching the battle between the remaining Uchihas. At first, it would seem as if Sasuke was Itachi's equal. But as the battle progressed, it became apparent that that was not the case.

Sasuke was breathing hard, and Itachi was merely staring at him. Finally, Itachi spoke.

"Sasuke, if you want any hope of killing me someday, than obtain the Mangekyou Sharingan. I've already told you this before. Don't interfere with my plans until you can face me, as an equal."

Sakura heard a high-pitched scream, and looked in the direction it had come from. She saw Naruto get hurt, and yelled his name. Sakura glanced from Sasuke to Naruto, and decided that Naruto needed her more.

Sakura ran up to him, and immediately began healing his wound. It wasn't as deep as the amount of blood would suggest, but it would take a significant amount of chakra to heal.

Kisame grinned again. "So, we meet again, kunoichi."

Sakura glared, but said nothing. She whispered to Naruto, "Be careful, Naruto. His blade absorbs chakra, so don't let it get too close to you. I don't want the Kyuubi to resurface again. I don't know if Sasuke can hold him back this time."

Naruto nodded.

Sakura finished healing him, and then returned to the fight between Sasuke and Itachi.

In a blink Itachi was gone, and this time Sakura hadn't expected it. She couldn't dodge the kunai that he threw, and it embedded itself into her thigh.

Sakura hissed in pain, but managed to land a blow to Itachi's shoulder, dislocating it.

Itachi jumped back, clutching his wounded shoulder. He glared at Sakura.

She stared defiantly at him, daring to look into his eyes. She knew then that Sasuke and her alone could not defeat Itachi without severely weakening him first. And Sakura knew just how to do that.

If she could manage to provoke him enough to get him to use Mangekyou Sharingan on her, than Itachi would be crippled and Sasuke could easily defeat him.

It would require a lot of sacrifice on her part, but Sakura was more than willing to do it if it meant bringing Itachi down.

Sakura smirked, putting her plan into action. "I don't know why you think Sasuke needs the Mangekyou Sharingan. It seems to me that it only _weakens_ you."

Itachi narrowed his eyes, but said nothing.

"After all, if a kunoichi, a mere Chuunin at that, can beat it, than what's the point?"

Sasuke was getting beyond annoyed that he was being ignored. He couldn't remember a time that he had ever been jealous of Sakura, but he was pretty darn close right now. All of older brother's attentions were focused on Sakura…but maybe that could work to his advantage. If his brother were distracted enough, it could provide Sasuke with enough time to severely cripple Itachi. Sasuke began formulating a plan in his mind.

Meanwhile, Sakura was still rambling about how stupid the Mangekyou Sharingan was.

Finally, Itachi interrupted her. "I don't know what you'll think you'll gain by provoking me, but if you want pain, than I'll give you pain such as you have never known."

Sakura smirked. "Bring it on, Itachi."

Before Sasuke could put his plan into motion, he felt a chill in the air. He looked back and forth from Sakura to Itachi.

Finally he decided enough was enough. Sasuke would not tolerate the cold shoulder, especially not from his older brother.

But just then Sakura fell to her knees, shaking and quivering.

Sasuke frowned. He didn't think the wound in her leg was that extensive. Suddenly he realized what was going on, when neither of them were moving. Sasuke swore. _Sakura!_

* * *

Sai wiped the blood from his mouth. Deidara's clay bomb had come too close that time. It had caught from behind. His paper tiger had shielded him from the brunt of the impact, but it had still got to him.

Deidara wasn't without his wounds, however. But he still had three-quarters of his supply of clay that he had brought, so he didn't mind the minor wounds, more like scratches to him, so much.

Sai wasn't looking too good, though. He was almost out of paper, and his chakra was running low.

For once, emotion was showing on his face. Fear…anger…desperation.

He knew that he had to protect the newly forged bonds between him and his new friends.

And if that meant giving up his life, than so be it. Naruto and Sakura had taught him all about being friends, and how life just wasn't complete if you're all alone in the world.

You need companionship, and Sai finally understood that.

* * *

Hinata screamed. Zetsu had moved so fast that she couldn't block her arm from getting stuck inside the flytrap. The sharp edges dug cruelly into her skin, drawing blood. She yanked to get it out, but it was firmly held.

And then it began closing even tighter, until her arm was penetrated to the bone. She ignored the searing pain as she kept tugging on her arm, trying to get it out.

And then to her horror, she felt something touching her arm…something slipper and rough. She didn't know what it was but she didn't like it.

Hinata then forced herself to calm down. She took a couple of deep breaths, and then summoned chakra into her fist, and emitted it as she would if she were striking an opponent. She heard a grunt of pain, and her arm was released.

Hinata instantly retreated back, but then Tobi was there behind her.

"I see you are wounded. I must apologize, but the boss says that you must die. I'm very sorry, but I have to follow orders."

Suddenly Tobi grabbed Hinata around the neck, and raised her until her feet were dangling in midair.

Hinata struggled in his grasp, but couldn't get him off. Her Byakugan faded, and the edges of her vision grew blurry. Fiery hot pain seared across her lungs as she couldn't breathe.

She faintly heard someone calling her name, but she wasn't sure who it was.

* * *

"Hinata!" Naruto yelled. He was in a deadlock with Kisame. Neither was willing to give the other an inch, and Naruto couldn't spare any time to help Hinata.

He was about to yell at Sakura to get her butt over there, but Kisame charged at him again. Kisame was pumped from all of the chakra that he had stolen from Naruto, and so was even faster. Before Naruto knew it, Kisame was in front of him, the blade raised.

Naruto braced himself for the impact, but it never came. Kisame stopped, midair. Naruto frowned and scratched his head.

"Eh?"

Kisame swore. "What the hell is this?"

Naruto looked down at the ground, and he noticed Kisame's shadow looked peculiar. It traveled all the way to the base of the trees.

Naruto looked up and stared in disbelief.

"Shikamaru?!"

Shikamaru sighed. "Yah. Team Neji, here to save your ass, Naruto."

"Team Neji?" Naruto asked, not seeing anyone else.

Shikamaru whistled shrilly, and suddenly there were seven more shinobi. Neji, TenTen, Shino, Kiba, Lee, Choji, and Ino all appeared beside Shikamaru.

Naruto sighed in relief, and then grinned. "It's about time!"

Neji scanned the area. He swore when he saw Hinata, but kept his cool. "TenTen, come with me. The rest of you, our comrades need help. See to it."

"Hai!" chorused seven people.

Naruto's shoulders slumped in relief. Help had arrived. They were saved…for the moment.

* * *

Whew…well, this chapter was actually done on time, but fan fiction wouldn't accept if for some reason…plus, it wasn't on my computer so that could've been it too. So sorry for being late! And I'm sorry if the battles weren't all that well written…they're most definitely not my strong point. I probably will not go in depth with them, just kind of catch the endings of them all since there will be so many. So bare with me please!

Well, we saw the reentrance of the Konoha Twelve, and Akatsuki…so this next chapter should be interesting…

As always, please review!

Oh…and on my profile I listed some stories that I'm thinking of writing. I would appreciate your comments on whether I should write them or not. Thanks!

belle2990


	17. Something You Must See

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto nor the characters. **

**Thanks for all of the reviews! I had never expected to reach 400...so I am eternally grateful to all of those who reviewed and will continue to review (hopefully).**

* * *

**Chapter Seventeen: Something You Must See**

Darkness engulfed Sakura. A haze of red in the background appeared. Sakura calmed her rapidly beating heart. She didn't want to be in this terrible place again. But she knew that she had to, if there was any hope of defeating Itachi.

He suddenly appeared in front of her. Sakura threw a punch, but Itachi easily dodged it.

"Give it up. This is my world, now. Just because you got out of it once doesn't mean that you can do it again."

Sakura set her jaw in determination. No one was going to tell her she couldn't…especially not an Uchiha.

"Itachi…I'll make you pay for what you did to Sasuke. A sick bastard like you shouldn't be allowed to live." Sakura's green eyes were hard.

Itachi smirked. "Kunoichi…killing you will bring me more pleasure than anything in a long time. I'm going to enjoy hearing your screams of pain."

"If that's what it takes to stop you, Itachi, I'll do anything."

Itachi said nothing, his face remaining blank.

Sakura blinked, and the next thing she knew she was bound to a cross, in the same manner as she was before in the Mangekyou Sharingan.

Sakura noticed that she wasn't in the same clothes as before. She didn't even have her sandals on. Her attire, if it could even be called that, was nothing more than a cloth wrapped around her chest and hips, barely even covering up the immodest parts.

Even her neck was bound, so tight that she could barely breathe, and her head was tied around the forehead, binding her entire body to the cross. She couldn't move a muscle.

Sakura's heart started beating so fast that it hurt. Her jade eyes roved every which way, searching for a sign of Itachi.

But there was nothing. She waited, and waited, and waited. Her body was now numb, as the ropes were so tight that hardly any blood was circulating. They dug cruelly into her skin, drawing blood in some places, and chafing her skin.

Sakura was also gagged, so she couldn't talk. Her mouth had by far gone dry, and she couldn't summon up enough saliva to even swallow. _At least he allowed me to blink, the bastard, _thought Sakura bitterly.

Sakura couldn't sleep, either. _Eventually,_ she thought,_ I'll just blissfully pass out. It can't go on forever._

But to her, it seemed like it did. Every time she thought she would get close to at least being semiconscious, it would rain just enough to wake her up, and then as abruptly as it came it would fade away. It was no light drizzle, either, nor was it a soothing, warm rain.

It was the rain of a hurricane, fierce and pounding and merciless as it attacked her scantily clad body. It felt like a thousand stinging needles cascading down upon her vulnerable skin. Not only that, but it was freezing. It was at that temperature where it was warm enough that it didn't turn to ice, but only just.

Her breath came out in puffs that could be seen on the air. And then, all of a sudden it would be glaringly hot, and sweat would run down her body, and into her eyes. Her eyes were bloodshot by now, and Sakura could never remember a time where she had been so tired.

The hours melted into days, and the weather would change so suddenly from hot to cold, and Sakura knew that under any normal circumstances she would be delirious at the least. But this was Itachi's world, and though her body was under immense strain, her brain remained active and working, so that she could not even succumb to the welcoming darkness of sleep.

On the third day, something happened. Sakura's body was so dead that it actually took awhile for her sharp mind to notice that something was different.

* * *

Sasuke rushed forward, but was too late to stop the inevitable.

He caught Sakura just as she fell, and gently laid her on the ground. He looked at her prone form, her wide open jade eyes, and pale skin. Her breathing was hitched, and her eyes unseeing.

Sasuke's face was hard. _Damnit! How dare she do this to me now?! Why the hell did she do that!? _

"You shouldn't have done that, Sakura. Tch. Typical of you. Always looking out for me."

He leaned close to her ear and whispered, "I won't let you down, Sakura."

He touched her soft, pink locks, and then stood up.

As much as Neji wanted to see to the welfare of his cousin, whom he was genuinely concerned about, he knew that her former teammates would handle the situation and care for her. Neji, as the only Jounin on the team and the team leader, naturally went to help with the most powerful S-class nin here: Itachi Uchiha.

TenTen was the best choice for backup because she was his sparring partner, and she knew the weakness of the Byakugan. She was his backup if anything went wrong…and it usually did.

Lee and Choji intercepted Tobi, who had just been observing the fight.

Ino went to help Sai, while Shino and Kiba went to Hinata's rescue.

Shikamaru stayed with Naruto, binding Kisame with the Shadow Possession Jutsu.

Neji landed beside Sasuke, who shot him a sideways glance. "What the hell are you doing here, Hyuuga?"

"Taking care of one of our own."

"I'm not-"

"I was talking about Haruno, Uchiha. Like I'd save your sorry ass. In case you've forgotten, I was there on that little retrieval mission when you betrayed Konoha. Me and my comrades nearly died trying to save you. I'll never make that mistake again and endanger my comrades."

"Neji-" started TenTen, but Neji ignored her.

"However, Haruno is an important asset to Konoha. She is one of the strongest kunoichi, and the best medic-nin aside from the Hokage and Shizune. I'd be willing to risk my life for her."

Sasuke glared at him, and then smirked. "Still bitter about the whole main branch thing, are you Hyuuga?"

Not soliciting a response, Sasuke sighed. "Go help your cousin, Hyuuga. I believe she might actually _want_ it. I don't need your help."

Neji glared. "As much as I wouldn't want to see your smiling face in Konoha again, it's orders. Too bad for you I'm good at following orders."

Sasuke turned on him, his Sharingan blazing. "I don't have time to argue, damnit! This is my fight, now go and help someone else!" When Neji didn't reply, Sasuke added quietly, "I need to save her. She's mine to protect."

Neji glared. "Fine. But don't expect me to cover you when your sorry ass gets kicked all the way back to Konoha and back."

Sasuke actually smirked. "Wouldn't dream of it."

Before leaving, Neji added, "Uchiha…don't go and die. I still want to fight you."

"Right back at you."

They nodded at each other.

"And Uchiha…you'd better save her, or you're a dead man…there are a lot of people who would get upset."

Sasuke glared. "Meaning you?"

Neji looked at him curiously. "No…meaning you."

Neji nodded to TenTen and they took off in search of a fight before Sasuke could retort.

Sasuke then faced Itachi, who wasn't moving . _Now's my chance! _

He whipped out Kusanagi, and the chidori crackled in the air like the chirping of a thousand birds.

He raced at Itachi. "Damn you, Itachi! I'll kill you for what you've done to the people I love! Ahhh!"

Just as Kusanagi was about to rip through Itachi, he disappeared. Sasuke instantly canceled the chidori, and muttered, "What the hell?"

His Sharingan eyes roamed every which way, ticking off the places that Itachi _wasn't._

He couldn't detect his presence anywhere. _He's cloaking his chakra._

Sasuke's heart was beating rapidly at his thoughts. _This is it. This is the day I've been waiting for over 7 years. It's finally come. Itachi…prepare to die!_

Before he attacked again, Sasuke stole a glance at Sakura's unmoving form. He frowned. _She said that she knew Itachi's weakness…and that she could defeat him! If he's out of the Mangekyou world…why isn't she?_

Just as he turned around, Itachi was in front of him.

Instead of attacking Sasuke, Itachi put a hand on Sasuke's shoulder. "Come, brother, there's something you must see."

Before Sasuke could react, Itachi's Sharingan was swirling, and Sasuke was caught up in the red world of Mangekyou Sharingan.

* * *

Sakura's dulled mind barely registered the fact that Itachi was there, in front of her. When it finally did, her eyes went wide with fright. Sakura had always relied on her mind, and her inner strength when it came down to the core of a problem, and when that was taken away from her, Sakura was helpless. Not to mention the fact that her newly required physical strength was slowly drained from her.

Things looked bleak. She had seriously underestimated Itachi. Where was her inner strength when she needed it most? It had abandoned her, like everything else had.

To Sakura, Itachi's face was the face of death. She could see her demise in the glimmer of his blood red eyes. Despite the cold, sweat beaded on her brow and her heart was racing. Her heart was about the only thing that _could_ move.

Itachi stood staring at her for a few more moments, and then he spoke in his deep, reproachful voice.

"Sakura…did you enjoy your stay here?" He chuckled bitterly. "I've got a surprise for you, kunoichi of Konoha."

She blinked and yet again things changed. It was the same background, and she was in the same spot, but someone else was with them. Her mind screamed. _Sasuke!?_

* * *

Sai was panting. His stomach had a huge gash on it, which was spouting out blood freely, making him dizzy. He was wondering how the others were doing. If they were about to die, or not. He was pretty sure he cared if they died or not, but he'd have to look it up when…if…he ever got home.

Deidara had formed another clay bird, and it was flying at Sai and exploded in his face.

When the dust cleared, Deidara saw no one. He frowned. The explosion wasn't powerful enough to completely incinerate the boy, and Deidara knew that he couldn't have jumped out of the way in time, and the boy was completely out of chakra.

Then he detected a new surge of chakra directly above him. He looked up as a barrage of kunai and shurikan were flung at him.

"Dang. Just when I had won too. Just my luck, yeah."

Deidara managed to dodge all but one of them, which lodged itself into his right arm, immobilizing it.

Deidara looked at it and swore. Now he only one good arm to make exploding clay with. He used his scanner on his left eye to locate the perpetrator. He was surprised to find almost a female version of himself.

Blond hair pulled back in a high ponytail, with bangs covering one eye. Bright blue eyes. Pretty face.

Sai, too, was surprised when someone had rushed in and swooped him up and into the tree. He looked at his savior with shock.

"Beautiful?"

* * *

Hinata's vision was blurry. Her arm felt like it was on fire, and she didn't want to use any more chakra than necessary.

Then her Byakugan detected rapidly approaching chakra waves. They were all familiar to her. _Could it be…_

Hinata sighed in relief when Kiba, Akamaru, and Shino all landed beside her.

"Kiba…Shino…"

Shino approached her and said in a quiet voice. "Just rest, Hinata."

Kiba grinned. "Yeah. We'll take care of him for you!"

Hinata smiled. "Thank you." They were saved!

* * *

**Okay guys…I'm really tired so I'll end it here for now. Sorry if it's not very long…but I have so much stuff I have to do…**

**So leave me a nice, long review and I'll get on writing a longer chapter next time!**

**Thanks!**

**belle2990**

**PS. I love the line, "She could see her demise in the glimmer of his blood red eyes" because it rhymed…and it sounded poetic. I didn't mean for it to rhyme…but I thought it sounded cool.**


	18. Itachi's World

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto nor the characters. **

* * *

**Chapter Eighteen: Itachi's World**

Sasuke's cool, calculating gaze roamed the land he knew in the dark recesses of his mind. Sasuke swore. He couldn't activate his Sharingan in Itachi's world. _Mangekyou Sharingan_…he thought with a curse. Suddenly in front of him was Itachi, his Sharingan blazing.

"Little brother…I have a surprise for you."

Sasuke steeled himself for the tremendous pain that was about to come, but he felt nothing. Instead, he found himself bound with chakra strings. Sasuke found that he could still move, and he frowned at the pointlessness of it.

But as soon as he heard a step forward, he heard a gasp, followed by a groan of pain.

Sasuke looked up and narrowed his eyes. In front of him was a figure bound tightly to a cross. He wouldn't have recognized the person if it weren't for the pink hair. Sasuke's fists clenched, and he had to fight to control his anger.

Sakura was barely clad, and her skin was pale and raw, as if exposed to the bitter cold or extreme warmth. There was dried blood all over her body, and a steady _drip drip_ of blood running down her leg and falling on the ground.

Sasuke swore and took a step towards Sakura to free her, but when he did Sakura cried out in pain again. Sasuke frowned.

He looked around to see what was wrong. His obsidian eyes followed the chakra strings attached to him, and he saw them wrapped around some time of device resembling a three dimensional oval. After following them further down the line, Sasuke swore when he saw where they led to.

The chakra strings that were bound to Sasuke were also bound to Sakura, albeit a bizarre way. Sasuke rapidly calculated that every time he stepped forwards in the direction of Sakura, the same chakra strings tightened around her. With every step, the strings would get tighter and tighter.

Sasuke's jaw was clenched in anger and frustration. How was he supposed to set her free if he couldn't reach her?

"Sakura!" he called out, hoping to at least comfort her in words until he figured out a plan.

But she didn't acknowledge him in any way. She acted as if he wasn't there.

Sasuke frowned. Sakura would never ignore him. If she wasn't tied down, she'd be all over him. Or at least, that's what his ego told him.

Sasuke was getting irritated now. He yelled her name again, as loud as he possible could. He tried activating his Sharingan again, but a sharp burning pain in his eyes made it impossible to.

Sasuke reached up to rub his burning eyes, but as he did so he heard Sakura groan in pain. Sasuke quickly released the pressure on the ropes and swore.

Sasuke's mind, for once, just wasn't working. He mentally cursed himself.

Sasuke tried to send chakra into the ropes to dissipate them, but when he tried to a crackling, sizzling sound was heard and he felt like he had been burned.

Sasuke would've sworn again if he'd thought it would've done any good. After all, he was in Itachi's world now. Itachi is in control now.

_Wait a minute!_ Sasuke thought. _Sakura can beat it! That can't be the real Sakura…I can't believe I fell for it. Damnit! I thought I'd gotten stronger…_

Sasuke hung his head in shame. After a few moments of silently berating himself, he resolved that it couldn't be the _real _Sakura in front of him. He had to trust her enough that she could defeat Itachi's Mangekyou Sharingan.

The more he thought of it the more ashamed he felt. _She's probably out there laughing at me right now for being fool enough to get caught in Itachi's world again._

With that last thought in mind, he walked forward, ignoring the pain and cries of the genjutsu in front of him. By the time he had reached her, blood was running down her arms and legs, and a great pool of it had gathered at her feet.

Sasuke's heart lurched at the disparaging sounds of her cries. Even if it wasn't the real Sakura, it still looked and sounded like her. Sasuke had to harden his heart against them so that he wouldn't go insane.

Sasuke was amazed at how real it looked and sounded. _Shows how powerful Itachi really is. Maybe Sakura was confused when she thought she had defeated the Mangekyou Sharingan._

After that last thought Sasuke felt a pang of guilt for doubting Sakura's abilities…and her integrity. He quickly squashed the saddening feeling before it made him weak.

Sasuke looked into the eyes of the fake Sakura. There was no gleam, nor any sadness. Just a calming acceptance. He was inches away from her pale, gaunt face. There was no color in her cheeks or her normally pink, delicious lips. Sasuke roamed her over with his eyes, and had to tell himself again that this wasn't the real Sakura. The real Sakura wouldn't ignore him. She would be begging him to save her…or at least to stop the pain. She wouldn't just be standing there, immobile while she was bleeding to death. She wouldn't give up.

Sasuke reached out to touch her…just to make sure, he told himself. Just as he was about touch her insipid cheek, he felt a presence behind him. Before he could turn around, he found himself yet again tied…but this time to a cross, in the same manner that Sakura had been tied.

Sasuke growled in frustration. _Damn him! I'll rip his heart out for this!_

Itachi appeared in front of Sasuke, smirking.

"Sasuke…I never thought you had it in you."

"Had what?" Sasuke spat back.

"The guts to kill someone you loved."

Sasuke's face became a mask of emotionless stolidity. "What are you talking about Itachi?" he asked, his voice devoid of any tone whatsoever.

"Why your pretty little kunoichi friend. Sakura Haruno, correct?"

"That's not her. You can't fool me with your petty little mind games, Itachi."

Itachi smirked. "It's not, huh?"

Sasuke's face cracked the barest hint of a smirk. "No. Like I said, you can't control me anymore."

"Foolish little brother. When are you going to learn that I don't want to deal with you until you have reached the Sharingan's full potential?"

Sasuke glared at him, breaking his mask. "I'll never stoop down to your levels, Itachi. When I kill you, it will be in _my _terms, in _my _own way."

"For all of your brave talk, look around you. You are in my world now, little brother. And every moment you waste is one second less that Sakura has to live. How could you cope with that, dear brother?"

"Shut up! That's not her! Sakura would fight back! She-"

"Are you so sure about that? Think about all that could have happened to her." Itachi lowered his voice, and a malicious grin spread across his face. "All that _I _could've done to her."

Sasuke's eyes flickered red, but just as soon it disappeared. Sasuke tried to activate his Sharingan, but the immense pain stopped him from doing so.

"I wouldn't try that again, Sasuke. In my world, if you overuse the Sharingan, you could go blind."

Sasuke swore. He took several deep, calming breaths. He had to get control of his emotions. Didn't he spend two and a half years under that snake bastard to learn how to do that?

Itachi sighed. "I can see that you don't believe me, little brother. Why don't I prove it to you then?"

Sasuke's head snapped up when he heard a whimper of pain. It was coming from that damned mind trick again. Damn Itachi and his mind games. Sasuke was sick to death of them.

Itachi appeared in front of Sakura. Sasuke's heart hurt as he saw Itachi run his finger down her jaw…Sasuke knew that it wasn't real, but actually seeing it (real or not) made it seem real to him. Sasuke resolved to kill Itachi, bring him back to life, and murder him all over again…in the most painful and sadistic way possible.

"Sasuke…" Itachi called to get his attention.

"Do you still not believe me?"

Sasuke remained silent.

Itachi sighed, then backhanded Sakura to get a reaction out of her. Sakura gasped, and Sasuke caught the barest glimpse of fire behind her eyes, but it was soon gone. Her breathing turned haggard and uneven, and each succeeding breath became longer and farther apart.

"Sasuke…come touch her. Feel the life that you're slowly taking away."

Sasuke blinked, and found himself mere inches away from her.

"Itachi…if she's real, than why is she ignoring me?"

"Because I choose to not let her see you."

"Why?" Sasuke demanded.

"Why does it bother you so much?" Itachi shot back.

"It doesn't…she's still annoying as ever, even when she doesn't know that I'm here."

"So you've finally admitted that it's her?"

"No!" Sasuke glared. "Itachi…stop with these useless games. Fight me. Just you and me…brother versus brother."

Itachi sighed. "I wish it were that simple, brother. But you're still not strong enough. Acquire the Mangekyou Sharingan, and I'll fight you."

Sasuke was getting tired of this useless talk. He heard Sakura groan in pain again, and he couldn't control the hand that tentatively reached out and skimmed the surface of her face.

Sasuke's heart lurched, and his breathing stopped. She _was_ real.

Sasuke couldn't even summon enough anger to swear. He was in a state of shock. His normally rapid, calculating mind just wouldn't cooperate with him.

Itachi smirked. "So now you know the truth…you've killed someone you love."

Sasuke tried to swallow the lump in his throat, but his glands wouldn't constrict to allow him to do so.

"Why?" he finally managed to croak out.

Itachi's voice was quiet, and sounded almost…regretful. "So you could reach your full potential, Sasuke. I knew it the moment you were born…you were meant to be great. The Uchihas were meant to be great."

"Then why did you kill the entire clan?"

"Because they were holding us back! Don't you see, Sasuke? They were all weak. If one Uchiha can defeat them all, then they weren't worth anything. If anything I did you a favor. Now you can rebuild the clan, and make it powerful and strong enough to rival any clan in the world."

"You're mad, Itachi."

"Actually I'm quite sane."

"Why Sakura? Why her? She had nothing to do with your plans…" Sasuke's voice was on the point of breaking. He couldn't summon up enough strength to try and free her from her bonds…both physically and mentally.

"Itachi…prepare to die."

"Why little brother, were you not just listening to me? I spared your life so that you could make us great again. You should be thanking me for not killing you when you were pathetic and young. Only I recognized your potential to surpass even me, Sasuke."

"Itachi…why are you so obsessed with power?" Sasuke whispered. His head was bowed, his fists clenched.

"Sasuke…I was born to do it. It was my fate to massacre our clan. Just as it is your fate to resurrect it."

"That's bull shit. You make your own destiny. Fate does not control your life."

Sasuke mentally groaned. _Great, stupid Naruto has been rubbing off on me again_.

Sakura chose that time to groan again.

"Sasuke…why are you not helping Sakura? Can't you see that she is in pain? Will you not end the suffering you have prolonged?"

Sasuke didn't answer. He looked at Sakura…really looked at her. Her will to live seemed to be dwindling as well as her life.

"I can't save someone who doesn't want to be saved," Sasuke replied in a curt manner.

"Sas…uke…"

Sasuke's head snapped in the direction of the whisper he heard.

Sakura was facing him. She was actually looking _at_ him, instead of_ through_ him.

"Sakura…"

Sasuke didn't know what to say. He closed his mouth, his sentence unfinished.

The light was back in her eyes now. "Sasuke…I only want to be saved if _you _want to save me."

Sasuke didn't know what to say. Sakura coughed violently, and thin trail of blood was running out of the corner of her mouth.

Itachi was behind Sakura in a blur, and before Sasuke could do anything he heard the sound of a kunai slicing through the air, and then he blinked. When his eyes opened, a kunai was embedded into Sakura's chest. To be more precise, her heart.

Sasuke's heart stopped. He saw Sakura's eyes widen, and then the sound of her last breath as her head fell down, her chin on her chest and her body limp.

She didn't utter a sound. Not a scream. No crying. Just a the whoosh of her last breath.

Itachi disappeared, and reappeared in front of Sasuke. "Now you won't have any distractions on your path to greatness, Sasuke."

* * *

Ino was panting. Blood was running down her face, and her bared stomach had a huge gash in it. Sai was in the same state she was in, only worse.

Deidara was just about out of chakra and of clay. He had enough to make one more clay bird. One more bomb.

Deidara looked around, to where the bomb would do the most damage. Ino saw what he was doing, and decided to end the fight before he hurt anyone else.

She put her hands out in front of her and shouted, "Mind Transfer Jutsu!"

Deidara had made the mistake of looking into her eyes at the same time.

Sai didn't know what had happened, but he saw Ino's body crumple to the ground and assumed the worst.

"Beautiful!" he cried out. He still called her beautiful, while he called Sakura "ugly," the nicknames he had given them when he first met them. He didn't really mean them, but he thought that he was supposed to give a nickname that meant the opposite of what he thought of them.

* * *

Choji spared a glance at over at Ino. He saw her lying on the ground, unmoving.

"Oh no...Ino!"

Rock Lee heard the worry in his voice.

"Go Choji! Defend your loved one! I shall hold him off for you long enough to save Ino!" Lee jumped in front of Tobi, who had been battling Choji while Lee took a break.

Choji nodded, not bothering to argue the point of rescuing his "loved one."

* * *

Hinata was desperately trying to heal herself while Kiba and Akamaru fought against Zetsu. Shino was helping her.

"My bugs have found no trace of poison from the wound. It's a clean one, Hinata. One that you should be able to heal."

Hinata nodded. "Thank you, Shino."

Shino nodded, and adjusted his dark glasses. It was his turn to fight now.

* * *

**Yah...I realize that I am way late. I don't really have an excuse...but I have a reason! I started my job and I've had plays to perform in. And I do have a life out of fanfiction...so don't hate me!**

**But please review...much thanks!**

**belle2990**


	19. An Avenger's Love

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto nor the characters. **

* * *

**Chapter Nineteen: An Avenger's Love**

"Rasengan!"

Sweat dripped from Shikamaru's face as he struggled to keep Kisame in check with his shadow bind.

Naruto finished making the Rasengan, and aimed for Kisame's chest. Kisame saw hell in the blond-haired boy's eyes. They were tinged with red, and his teeth had grown into fangs.

Shikamaru swore. He was almost out of chakra. He was barely managing to keep up with his jutsu. He was running on sheer will-power now.

The Rasengan exploded in Kisame's chest, and he let out a scream of pain before the blue light overtook him. As he felt the fiery pain in his body, the shadow jutsu was released, and he managed to swipe his blade Samehada down one last time.

* * *

Choji raced towards Ino, his heart pounding in his thick chest. His rational thoughts fled when he saw her crumple to the ground. If he had been thinking clearly, he would've recognized her jutsu, but he was too worried to think straight.

Choji let loose a kunai, but as soon as it hit the target Choji swore.

The same wound he inflicted upon Deidara had just been inflicted on Ino's body.

Deidara looked at him, as he fell to his knees.

"Oh no…"

* * *

Tobi was on the ground, coughing up blood. His mask was broken, lying in separate parts on the ground.

A kunai was clutched in his left hand, his right hand hanging limply on his side. He was staring at the blue sky, the sun shining high in the sky. He wondered how anything bad could be happening on such a beautiful day.

He allowed himself briefly to wonder if he was on the wrong side after all. He never did like killing, and he couldn't tolerate rudeness, but killing is all he'd ever known. That's why he jumped at the chance to join Akatsuki. Their reputation proceeded them far and wide, and Tobi had heard of the infamous Akatsuki since he was a young lad.

It was such an honor to join such a powerful gang. As he lay dying, Tobi's last thought was that he would've made a better good guy than bad guy.

He saw a huge boulder in the sky, blocking his view. It was suspended by an enormous hand, and before Tobi could try and move it was dropped on him, and Tobi knew no more.

* * *

Zetsu grinned. The white-eyed girl was down for the count, and the boy with the dog was too mad to do anything harmful to him. All that was left was the quiet one.

Zetsu couldn't see his face, considering most of it was covered up by a hood and mask, and what he could see of it had sunglasses on it.

He was a mystery to him. He didn't know what his jutsu was, if he had any at all. He decided to find out.

Just as soon as Zetsu was about to do something, he stopped when he felt something extraordinary. It was as if he'd been baking in the sun for too long, like the water was being drained out of him.

"What the hell?" Zetsu exclaimed. The insane side of him replied, "Let's kill them now!"

Zetsu took a step forward, but crumpled to the ground. He struggled to get back up, but to no avail.

"What the hell did you do to me!?" Zetsu screamed.

Shino took a step forward and pushed up his sunglasses. "I've been observing you fight. You're truly skilled, and I knew that I couldn't beat you using chakra-infused fighting. So I decided on a rather old-fashioned method."

"Which would be…"

"In order to destroy you I have to destroy your body. And how do you destroy a plant that can fuse itself with another? Make it wither. How do you make a plant wither and die? Drain it's water. Without water, plants cannot survive. You of all people should know that."

"How the hell have you been draining the water in my body without my noticing?" demanded Zetsu, although his voice wasn't so loud; it sounded very lethargic and sleepy.

In response Shino held up a hand, in which several bugs came crawling onto it.

Zetsu shivered. He hated bugs.

"I sent my bugs, which normally feed on people's chakra, to collect the water from your body instead. You were too busy fighting Kiba to notice."

Zetsu let out a serious of very explicit curses to which Hinata paled and Kiba glared. Shino remained emotionless, watching Zetsu die very slowly and painfully.

* * *

Choji raced to catch Deidara, finally recognizing that it was Ino's spirit in Deidara's body. Choji swore as blood gushed from the wound. He faintly heard Ino mutter, "Mind transfer, release!"

Choji threw Deidara aside, who gasped at the sudden pain, and gently picked Ino up.

Deidara coughed up blood, and weakly reached into his clay pouch only to discover that he had no more clay.

Choji bit his lip, and profusely apologized to Ino. A thin trickle of blood escaped from the corner of her mouth.

"It-it's all right Ch-Choji. Y-you didn't kn-know." A flicker of pain crossed her beautiful features.

Choji swore, and yelled for a medic.

Instead of a medic, Neji and TenTen showed up.

Neji frowned a the scene, and TenTen gasped. She quickly rushed to Ino's side.

"Stand back!" TenTen ordered Choji. Knowing the basics of medical procedures, TenTen applied pressure to her wound to clot the blood and stop the bleeding. TenTen looked up at Neji. "I don't know what else to do! We need Sakura!"

"Well where the hell is she?" asked the worried Choji.

"She's fighting the Uchiha," Neji replied calmly.

"Sasuke?" Choji asked, confused.

Neji shook his head. "Itachi."

"Well we need her over here, damnit! Can't you just take her place?"

"I would if I could. I'm pretty sure she's down for the count right now. I'll go check on her and bring her back as soon as possible."

Neji walked up to Choji and smacked the chubby boy's face. "Calm down. Panicking will not help anyone. I _will not_ allow one of my teammates to die. That's a promise."

Neji was already gone by the time Choji was brought back to his senses and nodded farewell to Neji.

* * *

Neji landed besides the prone form of Sakura. He turned her over and frowned. Instead of her eyes being wide open and afraid, they were closed, as if in a deep slumber.

He gently tried to shake her awake, but she didn't stir. He saw a movement to his right and quickly jumped up and formed his defensive stance, Byakugan activated.

Neji relaxed. It was just Sasuke. He scanned the surrounding foliage. Itachi was no where in sight.

Sasuke walked very slowly over to Sakura and knelt beside her. He felt for a pulse, but found none.

"Is she…dead?" he asked Neji in a quiet voice. The question surprised Neji, as he hadn't even considered the possibility that the only medic-nin could die. He used his Byakugan to check her vital signs.

Her heart was still beating, but only just. With every passing second it got slower and slower.

Neji cursed. "She's alive, but just barely. What the hell happened to her?" he asked frantically. Sakura couldn't die. She was vital to the survival of the rest of her team, a team that Neji planned on returning home complete.

"She died in the Mangekyou Sharingan. I don't know what'll happen to her now." The Uchiha's voice was devoid of any emotion whatsoever. His hands fell limply at his side, and he made no move to touch her. He just stared at her.

After a few moments, Sasuke stood up.

"Where are you going?" Neji asked as Sasuke turned away.

"To fulfill my lifelong goal," Sasuke replied, glancing back at the glaring Hyuuga.

"Wait-" Too late. Sasuke Uchiha left without a backwards glance.

* * *

Sakura was engulfed in darkness. She didn't know where she was, whether she was still in the Mangekyou Sharingan or not. A horrible thought struck her.

_Am I…dead? I can't be dead! Okay, calm down…if I'm thinking I don't think that I'm dead. So am I just…asleep? Yes…maybe that's it. If so then…when am I going to wake up?_

* * *

Neji calmed his breathing to a steady rhythm. He placed his hands over Sakura's heart and yelled, "Byakugan!"

Her heart was just barely beating now. Neji began pumping minimal amounts of chakra into Sakura's heart to keep it beating. He furrowed his brow in concentration as he fought to keep her alive.

* * *

Sasuke had been ripped out of the Mangekyou Sharingan. He awoke to find himself on the ground, his heartbeat irregular. As the memories of what took place resurfaced, Sasuke quickly jumped to his feet and activated his Sharingan.

His red eyes scanned the area for Itachi. He didn't see the black and red Akatsuki cloak anywhere, and swore.

That's when the Hyuuga had come and seen to Sakura. His heart hard, Sasuke mentally steeled himself for the thought that the pink-haired kunoichi had passed on to the other life.

He slowly and very deliberately walked towards her unmoving body, all the while caging his emotions. When he heard the Hyuuga say that she was alive his heart nearly burst with relief. And then came the "-only just" that nearly stopped his heart again.

Sasuke knew that Sakura was trapped in her own mind again…he wasn't exactly sure what would happen to someone if they died in their own mind. Whatever it was, it couldn't be good.

Sasuke decided that he couldn't do anything to help Sakura in the state he was in, and a feeling of helplessness washed over him. Soon after, the desire for revenge settled in his heart once again. _Itachi…this time, it's you or me. No more games. No more fooling around. This time it's a fight to the death. _

Sasuke kept his emotions in check, and then he left Sakura. _You'd better take care of her…Hyuuga._

Sasuke hoped that Neji had gotten the mental message. For some reason, he trusted that Neji would keep Sakura alive…if only because she was the group's only medic.

Then he went in search of his older brother, soon to be deceased older brother.

* * *

TenTen was furiously trying to stop the bleeding. She tried everything she could think of, but nothing worked. And heaven knew she was no medic.

"Neji! We need Sakura right now! Neji!" TenTen screamed for Neji at the top of her lungs.

Choji was sweating he was so worried. He didn't even feel hungry at all. In fact, it was the opposite. He felt like he was going to be sick.

"Ino…please be okay. I don't want to lose you…please, I'll do anything. I-I'll even give up eating chips and start eating healthier for you…"

Despite it being a whisper, TenTen's sharp ears picked up the urgency in the chubby boy's voice. She heard the desperate plea of someone in love.

For someone being in love herself, she wished with all of her heart that Ino would be okay. Despite being somewhat of a tomboy, TenTen was a romantic at heart.

_Neji…_she thought. _Please hurry. We all need Sakura._

* * *

Sakura had plenty of time to think. After what seemed like hours to her, she finally understood what had transpired while in Itachi's Tsukuyomi.

Sakura herself wasn't killed…but rather, it was her inner Sakura. Once again it had come to her defense when she wasn't capable of protecting herself.

But she had changed over the last two and half years. She no longer needed inner Sakura to be her real personality, for the real Sakura had become just like inner Sakura.

Sakura knew that it was time that she woke up.

* * *

Neji couldn't afford to wipe the sweat off his forehead.

"Damnit Haruno! Wake up! Your friends need you!"

As if by a miracle, her heart sped up, and started beating of its own accord. Neji hesitantly stopped pumping chakra into her, making sure that she wouldn't go into cardiac arrest.

He sighed in relief when her eyes fluttered open, and her breathing became regular again.

Sakura shakily sat up and blinked. When she saw Neji she frowned in confusion.

"Neji? When did you-"

Neji stood up. "There's no time for explanations. Your medical expertise is required as of right now. Your friend Yamanaka Ino is wounded and she needs your help."

"What!? Where is she?" Sakura immediately jumped to her feet, and then had take a couple of deep breaths to quell the dizziness and nausea that came with standing up too fast after being unconscious for a long period of time.

Neji turned and said, "Hurry."

Sakura nodded. She quickly hopped after him. She noted the absence of Sasuke, and was worried about him. Itachi was missing too, which could only mean one thing. And that did not bode well.

Sakura looked back for a moment, knowing that Sasuke wasn't there, but hoping just the same. When her emerald eyes didn't spot him, her heart sank for a moment. But then she faced ahead, where she knew that her friends needed her.

Sakura made a choice then. Her twelve-year-old self would've chased after Sasuke without even hesitating. But Sakura had matured, and she knew that her friends needed her more. After all, it was Sasuke's choice to become an avenger. And while Sakura bore him no grudge, she couldn't find it in her heart to abandon her friends to help him.

Sakura sent up a prayer to any higher power to keep him safe.

* * *

Sasuke was following Itachi. He was close now. He could feel it.

Sasuke felt a pang of guilt for just leaving Sakura, but knew that she was in capable hands. She had all of her friends there, and Naruto wouldn't let anything happen to her. Plus, she was strong. She would survive.

Sasuke couldn't bare the thought of having to say goodbye to her. The last time he'd had to that things did not go too well, and she ended up unconscious and crying.

He didn't stay with her in order to spare her feelings. Or at least, that's what he told himself. The truth was that he was scared. He couldn't see another precious person die again…

Sasuke would go crazy. After all, an avenger's love was the strongest of them all.

* * *

**Hello…**_dodges flying objects thrown by angry fans_**…Yes, I know that I have shirked on my updating…and I'm sorry. But I have a job now…so I might be a little late. It's a proven fact that the more reviews I get the faster I update…so be kind, and leave me a review.**

**Just to rest all of your fears, I wouldn't kill off Sakura. Unless it was essential to the storyline. But it's not. In fact, if you look on my profile and look at the bottom of the page where I posted all of the stories I am considering, you'll see that the sequel to this story has her in it…so that would be kind of hard to kill her here and then bring her back in the sequel…I like miracles, but not implausible things.**

**So be grateful that I didn't kill her off…because I have the power to! Okay, I'll stop being tyrannical now. : )**

**I'm not sure when I'll update, but I'll try to real soon!**

**belle2990**

**PS. Sorry if the skipping back and forth was a little confusing. I'm just trying to kill off the bad guys without a lengthy and dramatically long death scene…**


	20. Til Death Do Us Part

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto nor the characters. **

**Wow…to be honest, I never thought that this story would reach over 500 reviews. That makes me feel so…inspired to write more! Big shout out to everyone who reviewed…you guys make my day.**

**Oh my gosh! I am so freaking excited! For once I'm actually happy with the way the manga is going…**

* * *

**Chapter Twenty: 'Til Death Do Us Part**

Sasuke growled low in his throat. Itachi was near. He could feel it. That meant that Itachi knew that Sasuke was near as well.

Suddenly Itachi stopped moving. Sasuke did as well, anticipating Itachi's motives.

Then Itachi's chakra disappeared. Sasuke frowned, but concentrated on finding Itachi's chakra presence.

After a few moments, he felt it again…directly behind him. Sasuke spun around and narrowly missed the hand aimed for his throat.

Sasuke jumped back a few yards, analyzing the situation. Itachi's exterior seemed unharmed, but Sasuke could detect that his normal chakra flow was irregular. Itachi was weak right now. The double exposure to the Mangekyou Sharingan had severely weakened him.

Now was Sasuke's chance!

* * *

Sakura immediately got to work on Ino. She quickly pulled her back with a hair tie, and pulled off her black gloves.

She nodded to TenTen, who nodded back and then let Sakura take over. TenTen sighed, and wiped the sweat off her brow. She was about to go and rest when Neji spoke to her.

"TenTen, we must go and gather the rest of us."

TenTen nodded wearily, and took off after Neji to round up the rest of the Konoha Twelve plus Sai.

Sakura asked Choji how Ino had received the wound, and Choji told her in a clear, yet unsteady voice. She could tell that he was worried about his teammate, so she smiled briefly at him.

"Don't worry, Choji. Ino's strong, she'll pull through. Plus, you've got the Hokage's apprentice here, and I'll fix her right up." Sakura wasn't saying that to brag; she was merely trying to soothe Choji's fears. "I need you to be strong, and do exactly as I tell you."

Choji nodded, determination in his gaze. "What do you I need to do?"

Sakura gave him a grateful smile. "I need you to start a fire and boil some water for me."

Choji nodded, and leaped off to do her bidding.

Sakura was all alone with Ino now. The first thing that she did was gather enough chakra into her palms. Then she began by repairing the tissue damage by rapidly making new cells. Then she stopped the bleeding, and finally managed to stitch up the wound.

Ino winced as she woke up. She had been unconscious for awhile now, and she was dizzy from the blood loss. She blinked a few times to clear away the blurriness.

She saw a head full of pink… "Sakura?"

Sakura's emerald gaze rested on Ino. "Oh, Ino-pig, you're awake!" Sakura smiled gently at her.

Ino frowned. "What-"

"Just lie down. You need to rest. I don't want you overdoing anything so soon after being that badly wounded."

"Wounded?" Suddenly the memories came back to her, and a cold glint came into her ice-blue eyes. "I remember now. Akatsuki."

Sakura nodded grimly.

"How is…everyone?" Ino asked, sitting up slowly.

Sakura gently helped her up and replied, "I don't know…Neji went to gather the rest of them. I assume there are more wounded. Ino…who all came?"

Ino explained everything to her. How Shikamaru and Temari had come back to Konoha and told them of what had transpired. Then Tsunade had sent a rescue team and backup, someone who would work well together: the Konoha Twelve, minus Team 7. Sakura nodded, indicating that she was listening. All the while she was cleaning up, and wiping the blood off of Ino.

Ino's voice quavered. "I sure hope everyone's okay."

Sakura detected the worry in her friend's voice. "Choji is just fine, if that's what you meant."

"What? No no….I just meant…everyone…in general." Ino's pale cheeks were tinged pink.

Sakura bit back a smile. So her friend had finally gotten over Sasuke…and apparently her obsession with looks.

"Ino…I'm glad for you."

Ino was about to play dumb, but at her pink-haired friend's look, she smiled. "Thank you."

They sat in companionable silence for a few moments before Ino broke it.

"So forehead-girl…what's been going on with you and Sasuke?"

This time it was Sakura who blushed. "To tell you the truth…I'm not sure. But I'm worried about him. He took off after Itachi…"

Ino laid a cold hand on her friend's arm. "I'm sure he'll be fine."

Sakura nodded appreciatively before sighing.

Ino, ever the nosy one, was about to ask another question of Sakura when Neji returned. In his arms was his cousin and the heiress to the Hyuuga clan.

"Oh no…Hinata!" Sakura ran forward and immediately took Hinata. Sakura hissed through her teeth at the damage.

"How bad is it, Sakura?" Neji asked quietly. His voice bore no emotion, but Sakura saw the worried frown on his brow.

"I'm not sure, Neji." After cutting off Hinata's jacket, Sakura swore.

Without looking up from her work she asked Neji, "How many more are there?"

"No more critical injuries. Everyone has at least one minor injury, but they'll survive."

Sakura gave a brief nod of her head. "Bring them here quickly."

Neji took off at once to round up everyone else who was injured.

Sakura immediately began repairing the damage done to Hinata's arm. Hinata hissed when Sakura touched her wound.

Sakura mentally apologized to Hinata, but it was necessary to see where the bleeding was stemming from in order to stop it. Sakura probed around with chakra, and as soon as she found it, she healed it immediately.

Ino frowned. "Is she going to be all right, Billboard Brow?"

Sakura nodded. "Yah. I've just finished healing her up. Although, she'll have a scar there for the rest of her life. I can't afford to spend my chakra healing it all." Sakura's brow furrowed. "I hope she'll forgive me," Sakura whispered.

"I already do, Sakura," came a quiet voice.

Sakura and Ino started, not realizing that Hinata was awake.

"Hinata-"

"I'm all right, Sakura." Hinata's ivory eyes opened slowly. "I don't care if I'm scarred. Save your chakra for people who need it…I'll be fine."

Sakura's heart lurched painfully at the Hyuuga girl's unselfishness. If everyone was like Hinata, the world would be at peace.

Hinata's revolved around a certain loud-mouthed ninja. _I hope Naruto is okay…and that he'll accept me if I'm scarred…Don't even say something like that! Of course he will…I think…I hope…No, he definitely will! Believe it! _Hinata mentally smiled. _He's even got me thinking like him now…_

Her thoughts were interrupted by the return of Choji.

"Sakura! Sakura! I've got hot water! I've got bandages and I've got sterilized kunai and I've even got a bag of potato chips if you're feeling woozy! They've always helped me…Hey, where'd she go?"

Choji stopped from his ramblings to look around. He saw Ino and Hinata lying on the ground, unmoving.

He dropped everything in his arms, including his bag of potato chips. He was about to rush over when Ino sat up and groaned, holding her stomach.

Choji swallowed the lump in his throat. Then he calmly picked up the items he'd dropped and slowly walked up to Ino.

"So…uh…how are you doing? I can see that Sakura fixed you up…umm…"

Ino looked at him wearily. "Yah, Billboard Brow 'fixed me up' as you say. I'm hungry as hell though…" The blond eyed the potato chips ravenously.

Choji held them out to her. "Here, eat these."

"I can't…I'm on a diet," Ino replied quietly.

Choji snorted. "Oh come on. No one's going to care if you gain a pound or two for eating a bag of chips."

Ino shook her head. "No…I can't. Why are you even offering me them? Aren't they too precious to you to share?"

"That hurts…I'd share anything with you, Ino," Choji said, his eyes downcast.

Ino looked at him incredulously for a moment, and then turned away, her pale cheeks tinged with pink.

"Oh, Choji, you're back." Sakura began gathering up the rest of the supplies that she had. She had gone to wash the blood off of her hands. She sighed. This was going to be a long day.

* * *

Sasuke's heart was beating at a fast pace. This was his chance to finally kill Itachi and be rid of him. He was like an incurable disease, one that just wouldn't go away.

Itachi narrowed his eyes. "Do you hate me enough, little brother?"

"I don't hate you. I despise you. You took away everything of mine…my home…my family…my sanity…my dignity…my ability to love and be loved. You took _everything_." The air crackled and the pressure rose as the sound of a thousand chirping birds could be heard.

Sasuke unsheathed his Kusanagi and the chidori blazed through it. Sasuke pointed it at Itachi.

"And now your life ends!"

Sasuke ran athis older brother with his arm raised, prepared to deliver the killing blow. Just as he was about to pierce his brother's heart, Itachi grabbed his hand and reversed their positions, his other hand at Sasuke's throat.

Itachi leaned forward and whispered softly into Sasuke's ear. "And do you know why I did that, little brother?"

"Why?" Sasuke ground out between clenched teeth. He could've easily broken away, but he wanted to know why Itachi had murdered their entire clan.

"I did it to make you what you've become, Sasuke. Look at you. Look at how strong and powerful you are, all because of your hatred of me. You have so much potential, Sasuke, and the clan was holding you back. They were holding _us_ back. They were weak. The name Uchiha didn't strike fear into the hearts of our enemies like it should have. With the weak links gone, we can start a new clan, and people will soon learn to fear the name Uchiha."

Sasuke growled and threw Itachi off. "You've already spouted that nonsense at me before. I didn't believe it then, and I don't believe it now. As far as I'm concerned, I am the sole survivor of the Uchiha massacre. My brother died that same day, along with everyone I cared about. I'm just here to kill the hollow shell you've become and let my family rest in peace."

Sasuke raised his Kusanagi, but Itachi swatted it away. Sasuke glanced at it for a moment, and Itachi took that mere second to knock Sasuke down.

"Foolish little brother. You can't kill me."

"Haven't you always heard that the creation kills the creator?" Sasuke wiped the blood from his mouth.

Itachi said nothing, but his red eyes flashed, and soon an enormous amount of heat surrounded Sasuke. He looked around and swore. It was Itachi's Amaterasu, which created black flames that were hotter than the surface of the sun. You couldn't put them out by any ordinary means.

Itachi smirked. "You're finished, little brother."

"That's what you think!" Sasuke turned in the direction the voice had come from.

"Naruto?!"

* * *

Sakura wiped the sweat from her brow. She had just finished healing everyone of their wounds, from major to minor. She hailed Shikamaru.

"Shikamaru!"

The Konoha genius looked up. "Eh? Yah, Sakura?"

"Have you seen Naruto?" Sakura had been keeping an eye out for him, but she couldn't find him. She was getting worried now.

"Naruto?" Shikamaru scratched his head and thought.

Sakura narrowed her eyes. _You know, for a genius, you're not very smart._

"Oh, he said that he was going after Sasuke."

"What!?"

Shikamaru winced. He hated when females yelled.

"He-"

"Never mind," Sakura interrupted. "Stupid idiot! Now I have to go after them both!"

Shikamaru shook his head as the medic-nin took a step and nearly faltered. She rested her hands on her knees, panting.

"You know, it would be wise of you to rest. You're almost completely out of chakra right now," Neji observed.

Sakura glared at him. "I don't care. The two people I care most about in the world lives are in danger right now. I've got to help them, or I'd never be able to forgive myself."

Neji nodded. "We'll go with you."

Sakura shook her head. "No. This is between the three of us." Sakura stood up at and, without looking back at them, said, "If I'm not back in an hour, then you can come looking for us."

Neji nodded, even though Sakura didn't see because she was long gone by then.


	21. Words of a Different Nature

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto nor the characters. **

**Wow…I actually got over 40 reviews for one chapter…for me, that's really good! So thank you guys! To show you how much I appreciate that…I updated early! (See, good things happen when you review!)**

* * *

**Chapter Twenty-One: Words of a Different Nature**

Sweat poured off of Sasuke as the scorching heat began to burn his exposed skin. He hissed in pain, and then swore violently.

_Naruto…you idiot!_

Said teammate looked at Sasuke. "Don't worry, Sasuke. I won't fight Itachi. I finally understand that it's your fight to live or die for. But that doesn't mean that I can't help!"

Naruto whipped out a scroll. When he unraveled it it was blank.

"What the hell are you doing, you idiot?!" Sasuke yelled above the roar of the midnight flames.

"Just watch me! I'm getting rid of that fire!" Naruto began writing on the scroll. Sasuke was impressed. He didn't even think Naruto could do that.

Sasuke's eyes widened in horror. "Naruto, look out!"

But the warning came too late. Itachi had driven a kunai straight into Naruto's heart.

* * *

Hinata bit her lip and played with her fingers. She was worried about Naruto. She remembered what he told her when he left, before Sakura had healed her.

_Naruto's blue eyes looked down at her with concern and compassion…and something so intense that Hinata couldn't name._

"_Hinata…I'm sorry for not noticing you before. I…" Naruto's throat constricted with unshed tears_._ He tried to swallow the lump in his throat, but he couldn't_.

_Hinata looked at him with her clear violet eyes. "Naruto…it's okay. If I was braver, maybe…Maybe things would be different…"_

_Naruto bravely smiled. "Don't say things like that, Hinata. You're going to be just fine."_

_Hinata smiled through her pain. "I know I am. This wound isn't that serious. It's just that…I'm afraid for you."_

"_For me? Why?" Naruto looked puzzled._

"_Because people are after you, Naruto. Please, just be careful."_

"_You've got my word, Hinata, that I'll come back to you. If you know me, then you know that I _always_ keep my promises. Believe it!"_

_Hinata nodded, and then a spasm of pain washed over her and she nearly blacked out. Before she went unconscious, her blurred vision detected another familiar person. She heard Naruto cry out, "Neji!" and then she was lost to darkness._

Hinata looked at her arm. The wound was still red and sore, and it was slightly swollen. Sakura had told her to put a cool cloth on it and the swelling would go down. She looked at the jagged cut that Sakura had stitched up in a matter of minutes. There would be an ugly scar there, Hinata decided. But she didn't think that Naruto would mind, which was all she cared about.

She felt a familiar presence.

"Neji…"

Neji inclined his head in greeting. "Hinata, how are you feeling?"

Hinata looked down. "I'm fine, Neji. Thank you for asking. How are you? You weren't hurt, were you?"

Neji scowled. "No, I managed to avoid fighting," he said bitterly, regretting that he missed a chance to test his strength and help his comrades.

Hinata fiddled with her fingers, a sure sign that she was nervous.

The gesture did not go unnoticed by the Hyuuga prodigy. "Hinata, I wouldn't have let Naruto go if I thought he wasn't able to handle himself."

Hinata raised her eyes to meet his. "Why did you not go also, Neji?"

"I am the leader of this mission. It is my duty to stay with my comrades and protect them. Naruto has to go and protect his friends. After all, our mission is also to return Sasuke to Konoha."

Hinata nodded.

"Hinata, what I'm trying to say is this. Don't worry about Naruto. As your cousin, I am honor bound to keep you safe from harm. Otherwise I would let you go to him."

Hinata noticed that he didn't say as part of the Hyuuga clan, or on her father's orders. Hinata nodded gratefully for that, but she also understood that that was the way it had to be. She just had to trust Sakura and Sasuke to protect Naruto, and trust Naruto to protect himself.

* * *

Sasuke coughed. The heat was unbearable. Sasuke swore. He couldn't escape the fire. He knew that if he touched the black flames he would be done for. Nothing could put it out. They would just continue to consume him until there was nothing left but ashes.

Naruto was busy engaged in a battle of taijutsu with Itachi Uchiha. Naruto, he could tell, was still recovering from a previous fight, no doubt. But so was Itachi Uchiha. And Naruto had the fastest healing rate because of the Kyuubi inside of him. Maybe Naruto could distract him while he…Wait a minute, he was trapped in a ring of fire, literally. Sasuke could do nothing, and the heat was rapidly sapping away his strength.

His vision was blurring, and he must have been hallucinating because he thought he saw a flash of…pink? Wait a minute…only one person he knew was related to pink. Sakura!

Sasuke forced his eyes open and his heart nearly stopped when he took in the sight of his former teammate. She was standing beside the scroll that Naruto had left unfinished. The power of the fire was making her bangs flutter around her face. Her short pink hair was in a high ponytail. Sasuke did a double take. He had never seen her with her hair up before. It made her look…Sasuke shook his raven-haired head to clear his thoughts. Why did he care whether Sakura looked like an avenging angel or not? The important thing was that she's alive!

Sakura glanced at him with determination shining in her jade eyes. "Sasuke, don't worry. I'll have you out of there and then you can kill that pitiful brother of yours."

Before Sasuke could respond Sakura had already leapt off to join Naruto. Sasuke swore and wanted to viciously kick something, but as he had nothing but fire around him, his options were limited.

He saw Sakura take Naruto's place battling his brother while Naruto left a few clones to help her. Naruto himself popped up beside his scroll and hurriedly scribbled some more words and drawings on it before performing the appropriate hand seals. He murmured the jutsu's name and then placed his hand on the scroll.

A light blue mist was emitted from the scroll, in which it sucked all of the black flames into it and then returned to scroll. Naruto quickly wrapped it up and tied it, and put it into his pack.

Sasuke stood up. The ground around him was scorched black and the plants were dead. Sasuke narrowed his eyes. He was not letting Itachi get away this time.

Naruto and Sasuke turned their heads in the direction of a scream that had just reverberated through the forest.

They took off, each one yelling, "Sakura!"

* * *

Sakura cracked her knuckles as she told Naruto to get lost. She was not letting Itachi Uchiha get the best of her this time. No siree.

Itachi smirked. "So it's you again. I thought I killed you already."

"You can't get rid of me that easy, Itachi. I've got a long-time unsettled score with you."

"I don't know why you're still alive after all that I did," Itachi scoffed. Before Sakura could retort Itachi was in front of her and had her by the throat. He quickly leaned forward and whispered in her ear, "All those things I did to your beautiful body…you didn't enjoy that?"

Sakura nearly gagged. This man was so disgusting that just the sight of him made her want to vomit continuously. She aimed a punch at him, but he quickly jumped back and released her.

"Itachi…I'm going to enjoy seeing you die." Sakura narrowed her eyes in concentration as she attacked Itachi full on. In his weakened state, it was all Itachi could handle. One direct hit and Itachi would be finished.

But Sakura was also not in top shape. She had used most of her chakra healing her comrades, and what little was left she was rapidly using to keep Itachi occupied.

She took her eyes off of for a second to check on Naruto and Sasuke and Itachi was there. He threw a kunai aimed for her throat. Sakura noticed it barely in time. She managed to avoid a fatal blow, but when she turned her head it sliced open her throat. It barely missed her jugular vein.

Sakura cried out and clutched her bleeding throat. Meanwhile Itachi rushed towards Naruto to stop him from sealing the Amaterasu away and freeing Sasuke.

Sakura, through her blurred vision, saw this and immediately punched the earth, causing the ground to cave in and Itachi to be distracted.

Sakura used what little chakra she had left to heal the wound enough so that it wouldn't be a nuisance. Then she rushed after Itachi who was bound for Naruto again.

But by the time she cleared the rubble, there was no fire. Sasuke was rushing forward with Naruto beside him, both with a look of desperation on their faces. Upon seeing her, Naruto smiled in relief and Sasuke's face returned to one of cool deliberation.

Sakura looked around for Itachi but did not see him. Naruto had reached her and held his arms out, ready to hug her. He stopped when he saw the blood on her.

"Sakura! What happened-"

"We don't have time for that, Naruto! Itachi's disappeared. We have to find him before-"

A sharp pain appeared in her side. She looked down, amazed to find a rapidly spreading bloodstain on her shirt. She dropped to her knees in shock.

"Before that happens, Sakura?" Itachi was standing behind her, holding a bloody kunai.

"Sakura!" Naruto rushed forward, but Itachi easily smacked him aside. Naruto got right back up again, but Sasuke stopped him.

"Naruto, stay where you are. This. Is. My. Fight." He ground out each word, his voice as cold as ice.

Naruto nodded, but couldn't stop the anger from consuming him. "Itachi you bastard! I'll make you pay for what you did to Sakura!"

Unbidden, the Kyuubi became awake inside of Naruto. His chakra was swirling red around him, and his normally blue eyes became dangerously red. His nails grew into claws and his teeth became fangs as his power increased tremendously.

Sasuke saw it out of the corner of his eyes. "Naruto, control it!"

"I-can't!" Naruto yelled. A chakra tail appeared behind him, and Naruto growled, "And I don't want to!"

Sasuke swore and immediately appeared in front of Naruto, his Sharingan swirling. He immediately entered Naruto's mind and held back the Kyuubi, keeping it in it's prison.

Naruto fell to his knees, exhaustion taking over him. Sasuke told him to rest while he finished off his brother once and for all.

Itachi kicked Sakura in the back, making her cry out in pain and fall to her hands and knees, panting for air.

Itachi grabbed Sakura's hair, yanking out the ponytail in the process. He held a fistful of her pink hair and yanked it back, causing her eyes to tear and her to cry out again.

Sasuke's Sharingan was activated fully when he heard this. Sasuke threw a kunai and made Itachi jump back, away from Sakura.

Sasuke looked at Naruto and Sakura, both injured and both on the ground, unable to fight. _Good. There won't be any more interruptions then. Just me and Itachi._

Sasuke did his signature mark: Katon: Hōsenka no Jutsu (Fire Release: Phoenix Immortal Fire Technique). Within the flames he hid shurikan.

Itachi barely gave it a glance. He merely blew away the flames and threw shurikan to deflect the other shurikan.

"Foolish little brother. You can't beat me if you continue to use child's play."

Sasuke performed more hand seals. Snakes shot out of his sleeves, aimed at Itachi.

"Katon: Gōkakyū no Jutsu (Fire Release: Great Fireball Technique)!" Itachi sent a massive fireball at them, disintegrating them all.

Their battle raged on for a few more minutes. The two brothers stood facing each other, both of them tired but neither of them showing it.

"Sasuke…"

Sasuke's sharp hearing picked up the plea. It was Sakura. Sasuke forced himself to ignore it, knowing that he couldn't afford the distraction.

"Get him to use the Mangekyou Sharingan again…it's his greatest weakness. His eyes-"

Itachi disappeared and reappeared behind Sakura, who's eyes widened. Time seemed to stand still as Itachi grabbed Sakura and spun her around to face him.

"You started out as nothing, a mere pinprick. Now you are a thorn in my side. One which will not be any longer."

Sasuke's anger surged to the surface as he rushed forward, using all his speed.

"And now, kunoichi, you die."

Before Itachi could deliver the killing blow, Sakura swiped a hand over his eyes, making her hands into chakra blades. She didn't manage to actually cut his eyes, but the searing chakra managed to burn his crimson eyes.

Itachi instantly released Sakura, who scrambled away from the Sharingan user.

Sasuke was there in an instant, shielding Sakura from any future attacks from Itachi. Before Itachi could retaliate, Sasuke thrust Kusanagi into his older brother's shoulder.

"Chidori Nagashi!" The lightning crackled and chirped as Sasuke sent it through Itachi's system, paralyzing him.

"Guh!" Itachi spit up blood as he fell on his back, unmoving, his black eyes staring vacantly.

Sasuke pulled his sword out of his brother's chest, not quite believing that he had killed his brother. Sure enough, Sasuke detected the faint and haggard breathing of his brother.

As Sasuke raised Kusanagi for the finishing blow, Itachi's obsidian eyes bore into Sasuke's matching ones. Sasuke's hands wavered. Those weren't the eyes of the cold-blooded murderer who massacred his family; they were the eyes of his brother.

Sasuke fell to his knees. "Itachi…"

Itachi stared at him intently for a few moments. Then he opened his mouth to say something, only to cough up more blood.

Sasuke did not move, neither to help nor hinder Itachi. He just sat there, watching the life of his only living relative ebb away.

Itachi tried once more to speak. "Sasuke…thank you." Then the eyes of the eldest Uchiha closed forever.

The cry of the last remaining survivor of the Uchiha clan could be heard round the world.

* * *

**Whew…that was a doozy. Well, I'm fairly happy with the way the fighting turned out. Like I said before, not my strong point. But all in all I'm glad that it's over! (The fight between Sasuke and Itachi…not the story! We've got a little more to go…) **

**So naturally this is not the end of the story. We're close, but not quite there. I've still got to wrap up a few loose ends…maybe throw in a humorous chapter because we need some comic relief after so many deaths…but anyways.**

**Please review! Thank you so much!**

**PS. If anyone's seen "Pirates of the Caribbean: At World's End", what did you think of it? I don't want to spoil it for anyone reading this…so I'll tell you what I thought in a reply.**

**PPS. I'm so excited for the manga! The new one comes out tomorrow…Sakura and Naruto are so close to Sasuke now! I'm so excited! Oh, and of course I'm anticipating some NaruHina fluff!**

**Adios! **


	22. Separate Missions

**Disclaimer: I do not own Naruto nor the characters. **

**Well...this is the last chapter of "When Calls the Heart." Kind of sad, really. But every story must come to an end!**

**Thank you so much for the reviews you guys!**

* * *

**Chapter Twenty-Two: Separate Missions**

"_Sasuke…thank you."_

Itachi's dying words haunted Sasuke's dreams. Sasuke would never forget the look in his brother's eyes as the life slowly drained out of him.

After Itachi had died, Sasuke had cried out from the immense pain washing over him. He wasn't _sad_ that Itachi had died; but rather, Sasuke was hurting because he had just killed the only other living Uchiha.

What happened afterwards was still fresh in his mind.

* * *

_Sakura crawled over to Sasuke, blood dripping from her wounds. _

"_Sasuke…" she whispered, not sure what to do._

_His scream of anguish had tore through her already-wounded heart, nearly cutting it in half._

_The last of the Uchiha clan was on his knees, his head in his hands and his body quivering._

_When she touched his warm shoulder with her cold hand, his body jerked and flung her arm off._

"_Don't touch me!" he whispered hoarsely at her._

"_Sasuke, please-"_

"_Just go away."_

"_But-"_

_Sasuke's head whipped around, his Sharingan piercing through her. "I said to leave me alone, Sakura." His tone was cold and his voice deadly._

_Sakura, for the first time in a long time, felt herself overcome with fear of Sasuke. The commas in his red eyes were swirling, and Sakura wasn't dumb enough to test Sasuke when he was like this._

_She bit her lip to and nodded, knowing that if she spoke her voice would waver and the tears in her eyes would spill over onto her pale cheeks._

_Naruto groaned as he woke up, his body torn apart by the demon's chakra inside of him. Sakura shakily got up and limped over to him, her hand covering her wound._

_She fell to her knees beside him and waved a hand over his body to check for critical injuries. His muscles were torn apart, and his internal organs weren't in there rightful places or functioning properly._

_Sakura swore. Naruto needed medical attention, and fast. Sakura herself had only a minimal amount of chakra that she could give to Naruto without endangering her life. _

_She started to heal the damage that the Kyuubi had done to Naruto's body._

_While in the midst of this Naruto's cerulean eyes opened up and he frowned. He was about to sit up when Sakura forced him to stay down. Naruto bit back a groan as his entire body felt like it was on fire._

_Naruto saw how beat up Sakura was and immediately forced her to stop healing him. He told her that he would be healed by the next day anyway, so she should heal herself. When there was defiance in her eyes, he nodded in Sasuke's direction and said, "For Sasuke."_

_Sakura bit her lip and nodded her understanding. She had to stay strong for Sasuke. He needed her. No matter how hard he tried to deny it, Sasuke needed someone that he could always depend on. That someone was her, Sakura Haruno. _

_She healed the major damage and stopped the bleeding. She would still feel some pain but it wouldn't hinder her anymore._

_Sakura once again crawled over to Sasuke, his black eyes stricken towards the sky. She cautiously touched his shoulder again, to which he jerked, but ignored her otherwise._

_She shook his shoulder, whispering his name. He didn't acknowledge her presence._

"_Sasuke…please. We've got to go home now. Our friends might need us-"_

"_I don't care."_

"_Sasuke-"_

"_I told you to leave me alone, Sakura. Go home."_

"_Not without you."_

_Sasuke tore his eyes away from the darkening sky to look at Sakura's green orbs. "Sakura, I'm never going to that place again. Not with you. Not with Naruto."_

_Sakura clenched her jaw. "But you said-"_

"_Forget what I said." He once again looked at the sky, now filled with dark clouds._

"_Sasuke-" _

_Red eyes now looked at her, his Sharingan swirling. His cold hands gripped Sakura's upper arms tightly. _

"_Sakura, go away. I couldn't care less if I ever saw you again."_

_Unbidden tears sprang to her eyes, but Sakura forced them not to fall. "Sasuke, I love you. Please, come home with me!"_

_Without hesitation Sasuke coolly answered, "No."_

"_What about your goal, Sasuke? You've already killed your brother," Sasuke flinched, but Sakura continued, "And avenged your clan. I thought you were going to rebuild the Uchiha clan, Sasuke. How are you supposed to do that away from home, from your clan's home?"_

"_Sakura."_

"_Yes?" she asked hopefully._

"_You're annoying." _

_The last thing Sakura saw was the commas of the Sharingan swirling before blacking out._

_Sasuke caught Sakura as she fell forward and laid her gently down. He saw Naruto stir and slowly sit up._

_Naruto's chakra started to turn demonic when he saw Sakura on the ground and Sasuke's Sharingan. _

"_Naruto, take Sakura home." Sasuke stood up and turned his back on Sakura and Naruto._

"_Sasuke!" Naruto yelled, shakily standing up. "You bastard! What did you do to Sakura?"_

_Sasuke ignored him and continued walking away._

"_After all that we've been through together you'd leave us, just like that, again? Sasuke, Sakura needs you! I thought you cared about her! Geez, you kissed her enough times-"_

"_Naruto, I care for no one. I am an avenger. That has been my identity since I was eight years old. That's what I live for now."_

"_You idiot! You've already had your revenge. Who else is there to kill?"_

_Sasuke narrowed his eyes. "The man that made my brother the way that he was. I'm going to kill him."_

_Naruto frowned. "Who the hell-"_

"_The Akatsuki leader, idiot." Sasuke stopped and turned to look at Naruto. "Go home. Don't come after me, or I'll kill you." Sasuke briefly glanced at Sakura. "The same goes for Sakura. This is the last time we'll see each other in this life, Naruto. Live well."_

"_Wait-" began Naruto, but Sasuke had already disappeared. _

* * *

Sasuke looked back at his three companions. He had killed his brother nearly a month ago.

"Are you ready?" he asked them.

The only female answered right away, batting her eyelashes. "Of course, Sasuke. I'm always ready for you."

"Karin you're such a whore. You're always hott for Sasuke. When are you going to figure out that he's not interested?"

Karin pushed her glasses up before responding, "Suigetsu, you bastard, I'll kill you for that."

The sharp-toothed man leered and gripped his massive sword. "Try it, bitch."

"Both of you shut it. We don't want to tempt Juugo." The two quieted down at Sasuke's warning. Juugo remained silent.

After a moment Karin asked, "Sasuke, are you sure you have to ties? Not to any village, or a certain medic-"

"None."

The answer seemed to satisfy her, for she shut her mouth and the four shinobi started their journey.

* * *

_Konoha_

Naruto looked at Hinata discreetly. They still hadn't told anyone about their relationship yet, although a select few of their friends knew about it. Naruto was terrified of her father finding out before he had a chance to prove his worth to him by becoming the Hokage.

Hinata blushed when she saw him staring at her. She tried to ignore him and focus on what Tsunade was telling them, but found that she hadn't been listening at all.

"…so that's your mission," Tsunade finished.

"Hai!"

The four Konoha shinobi left her office, leaving Sakura alone with Tsunade.

The pink-haired medic had been eerily quiet after returning home. Tsunade wasn't sure if they had told her the whole truth of what had transpired, but she got the gist of it. That Uchiha brat had once again eluded them and hurt Sakura.

Tsunade would kill him…after Sakura did. For now, Tsunade would work on trying to make Sakura forget all about him. She had enlisted the help of Rock Lee, who was all-too willing to comply with her request.

But Sakura had changed. She wasn't her normal cheery self anymore. She wasn't depressed, just quiet, only speaking when spoken to.

"Sakura."

"Yes, Tsunade?"

"I'm sending you on a mission."

"What kind?" Sakura asked.

"The kind that takes a long time to complete."

Sakura nodded her head briefly, waiting for her mentor to finish.

"It will require you to form a new identity and to be gone for an extended amount of time. Do you have any objections so far?"

Sakura shook her head.

"Good. I'll give you the details later. For now, go home and say goodbye to your friends and family. You won't be seeing them for an uncertain amount of time."

Sakura shook her head and bowed.

After she left Tsunade sighed. She hoped she was doing the right thing.

* * *

Sakura looked back at Konoha village, her home. She adjusted the pack on her back and headed off for a new mission and, hopefully, a better life.

* * *

**It's finished! I'm sure you all want to kill me now for making you wait so long and for such a short chapter with a cliffhanger…but I am making a sequel (look on my profile page for info) and will try to make that story a lot longer. **

**Well I am very pleased with the way this story turned out. I got a lot of reviews, just about all of them positive, and way more than I thought I could get.**

**Thank you to everyone who read and reviewed! I hope this story was worth your while!**

**Did I mention how much I love reviews?**

**The sequel will be entitled, "The Second Sannin" and should be up soon!**


	23. Sequel

Hey just thought I'd let you guys know that I posted the first chapter of the sequel to this story earlier on!


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